In 2000, 2.0 percent of whites aged 12 or older needed treatment for an illicit drug problem. The percentage needing treatment was about the same among blacks and Hispanics (2.5 and 2.4 percent, respectively). The highest rates of those needing treatment were for persons reporting more than one race (5.5 percent) and for American Indians/Alaska Natives (4.3 percent); the lowest rate was for Asians (0.7 percent).

Among whites needing treatment, 17.8 percent received treatment at a specialty facility. Only 9.0 percent of all Hispanics needing treatment received treatment. The percentage receiving treatment among blacks who needed treatment was 18.6 percent, although the sampling error associated with this estimate is large and the estimate is not shown in the tables.

Whites accounted for most of the illicit drug treatment need in 2000. Of the 4.7 million persons needing treatment, 3.2 million (69 percent) were white. Whites accounted for 75 percent of the persons who received specialty treatment for an illicit drug problem in 2000.