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| ▲ Rep. Jeon Bong-min of the People Power Party (Yonhap) |
drug test-forensic service
Nearly 230,000 forensic drug tests requested in 3 yrs; over 40 pct show positive results
SEOUL, Oct. 4 (Yonhap) -- The number of drug test requests to the National Forensic Service (NFS) has been jumping year after year, with more than 40 percent of the total cases positive, data showed Wednesday.
The forensic institute received 65,561 drug test requests in 2020, 76,559 cases in 2021 and 89,033 last year, according to an NFS report submitted to Rep. Jeon Bong-min of the ruling People Power Party.
The number reached 62,107 cases as of the first half of this year, implying a surge of over 100,000 cases annually, the report said.
Of the total number, over 40 percent had a positive result.
The report also found that increasing numbers of new types of drugs were being detected, including synthetic cannabinoids, ketamine and ecstasy, compared with the traditionally common meth and cannabis.
The cases of synthetic cannabis use jumped from one in 2018 to 757 last year, while the number of ketamine use also leaped from 21 in 2018 to 705 in 2022. A total of 325 ecstasy cases were detected last year, a 22 percent increase from 15 cases in 2018, according to the report.
Last year, 14 drug tests were requested for adolescents below the age of 14, and all of them tested positive in a urine or hair test.
"The government should reinforce crackdowns on new forms of drugs and substitutes that are used as narcotics and expand drug prevention education for teenagers," Rep. Jeon said.
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