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International Journal of Economics and Financial Research

Online ISSN: 2411-9407
Print ISSN: 2413-8533

Quarterly Published (4 Issues Per Year)





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Volume 11 Number 1 March 2025

Substance Use Treatment and Crime: A State-Level Analysis


Authors: Mehdi Barati
Pages: 1-7
DOI: doi.org/10.32861/ijefr.111.1.7
Abstract
This study examined the impact of substance use treatment rates on crime using a two-way fixed effects model that leveraged year-to-year variations in admissions to substance use treatment facilities within U.S. states from 1992 to 2019. By controlling for time-varying state characteristics, the findings suggested that states with higher admission rates often experienced lower crime rates. Specifically, for every additional 100 admissions per 100,000 people within a state, the violent crime rate decreased by 2.6, and the property crime rate decreased by 11.8. These decreases represented declines of 0.67% and 0.35% relative to the sample mean, respectively. Moreover, this impact was more pronounced among female patients in drug treatment programs, with an additional 100 female admissions associated with a decrease of 9.1 in violent crimes and 36.8 in property crimes.