In this essay I will define drug abuse and show the economic impact of the sale of illicit drugs. I will present an argument for legalization and its impact on the economy. I will then discuss some economic costs related to lack of productivity, health care costs, and other costs associated with drug abuse. In order to understand the economic impact of illicit drugs, we must first define what a drug is. A drug is defined as any substance other than food that affects the functioning of your mind or body. Abuse is defined as the misuse or misuse of something. Drug abuse would therefore be defined as misuse of drugs. As a DARE officer, this definition has been ingrained in my mind for eighteen years. During my twenty years in law enforcement, I learned how dangerous drugs are to the economy. They damage your body and drug abuse also has a huge economic impact on the country. In the United States, there are two types of drugs, legal and illegal. Legal drugs have two subcategories: prescription and over-the-counter. Prescription medications are classified into different categories called schedules. Those at greatest risk of abuse or dependence are placed higher on the calendar. Schedule I drugs are drugs that have no safe or accepted medical use in the United States. Examples are heroin, marijuana, LSD, PCP, and crack cocaine. As you move forward in the timeline, the drugs are less addictive and have a lower potential for abuse, but they are still controlled by the Drug Enforcement Agency. Schedule V is the least controlled drug. Examples are codeine, valium and xanax. Non-prescription medications are those that are sold without a prescription and you do not need a prescription to buy them. The o...... middle of paper ......0,000,000 on health care, productivity and other costs, and yet during the same period we have spent only $150 billion on enforce drug laws. If we focused on drug treatment and rehabilitation, I think a substantial portion of the trillion dollars could be used for other purposes. things. The economic benefit could be immeasurable. Works Cited Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). (nd). Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). Retrieved April 10, 2011 from http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/Moomaw, RL, Olson, KW, & Edgmand, MR (2007). Crime and drugs, a modern Delima. Economy and contemporary issues (7th ed., pp. 201-216). Mason, OH: Thomson/South-Western. THE ECONOMIC COSTS OF DRUGS. (2001, September 1). National Criminal Justice Reference Service. Accessed April 7, 2011 from www.ncjrs.gov/ondcppubs/publications/pdf/nomic_costs98.pdf