HOW HAS THE COVID-19 EPIDEMIC CHANGED DRUG USE AND THE DRUG MARKET IN SLOVENIA?
HOW HAS THE COVID-19 EPIDEMIC CHANGED DRUG USE AND THE DRUG MARKET IN SLOVENIA?

Summary/Abstract: The purpose of our study was to explore the effect of the COVID-19 epidemic on drug use, the drug market and the availability of help and support in Slovenia. Through an online questionnaire, we collected a non-representative sample of 680 people who used drugs before and during the epidemic in 2020. The results showed the use of illicit drugs and alcohol has reduced. A significant increase in the frequency of use has only been detected in marijuana. The most prominent changes in the drug market were the reduced number of drug dealers and lower availability of certain drugs. Accessibility to drug services has been reduced and respondents also had significant financial consequences due to loss of work. Due to decreased availability of sources of support at the time of the epidemic, adjustments to services for drug users are necessary before the end of the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of promoting online interventions and maintaining contact with users when the services are not physically accessible.

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