Queensland Drug Trends 2020: Key findings from the Ecstasy and Related Drugs Reporting System
Feb 5, 2021
Every year, the Ecstasy and Related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS) interviews people who use substances regularly, to find out about changes in price, purity and availability of a range of different drugs. The “Queensland Drug Trends 2020: Key Findings from the EDRS” report has recently been published, with data collected from April - July 2020. Covid-19 has had impacts on a range of substance use patterns. One of the most significant changes noted in this report is an increase in people reporting cannabis as their drug of choice with 28% of the sample reporting cannabis as their drug of choice in 2019, rising to 40% in 2020. The report also noted declines in the frequency of alcohol consumption during the period, most likely related to limited socialising opportunities related to covid-19 restrictions. About 54% of the sample reported a decrease in the use of ecstasy / MDMA, with most of these people reporting that the reason for this decline was fewer opportunities to be with people or to go out to venues.