Financing cocaine use in a homeless population

Introduction: Previous research has suggested positive associations between legal and non-legal funding sources and drug abuse among homeless populations. Given the high prevalence of cocaine use/abuse in the homeless population, understanding how cocaine use is financed (the purpose of this study) has potential to inform interventions and policy for this difficult-to-treat population.

Methods: The sample (N=400) was randomly recruited for a NIDA-funded homelessness study. Standardized diagnostic interviews and urine drug testing were conducted at intake, 12 and 24 month follow-ups for substance use and abuse. Individuals indicating they had used cocaine in the last year or testing positive for cocaine on any urine screen were coded as using cocaine. In structured interviews, individuals were asked if they had received any income for the previous thirty days from panhandling, employment, illegal activities, welfare payments, disability benefits, family/friend support. Comparisons were made between cocaine users and non-users using t-tests and chi-squares.

Results: Slightly more than half the sample demonstrated cocaine use. Cocaine use was significantly associated with income from panhandling, illegal activities, and employment and not associated with welfare payments, disability benefits, or family/friend support.

Discussion: Given the proportion of individuals working in temporary labor (where individuals are paid daily), homeless individuals using cocaine appear more likely to finance their drug use through means with immediate monetary pay-off, which would thus appear to impede the type of savings necessary to procure housing. From these findings, it would appear that financing cocaine use represents a barrier to achievement of stable housing.