Drug Use and Social Exclusion

"In Denmark, there is a clear correlation between drug abuse and problematic social and economic life conditions. The social marginalization of drug abusers is high. When taking a look at the social, residential and educational conditions among the drug abusers in treatment, it is clear that they are a marginalized group compared to the rest of the population. They are more often homeless, they more often have a short educational background and they are more frequently provided for through cash benefits and pensions.
"As mentioned in chapter 5, the group of drug abusers admitted to treatment are characterized by having a relatively remote affiliation to the labour market. Thus, only 12% of them who were in treatment in 2010 were on payroll and as many as 66% were on transfer income. Furthermore, “only” 25% have completed an education beyond “folke-skole” (primary and secondary school) and 8% have left school before the 9th grade.
"Although these figures indicate that we are dealing with a relatively marginalised group, it is also important to point out that the number of drug abusers employed has gone up the last year as has the educational level, which to a high extent is attributable to the change in drug use patterns.
"As regards the housing situation of those who are admitted to treatment, only 59% of them report having a home of their own, whereas 4% report that they are homeless."