2021-2022 State Estimates for Substance Use and Mental Health

State-level estimates for 35 measures of substance use and mental health from the 2021-2022 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). The dataset provides modeled estimates for the civilian, noninstitutionalized population ages 12 and older across all U.S. states, created using small area estimation (SAE) methods.

Use Cases

• Compare state-level prevalence of Marijuana Use in the Past Year against Perceptions of Great Risk from Smoking Marijuana Once a Month to study risk perception and behavior.
• Analyze geographic patterns in Opioid Misuse in the Past Year and Opioid Use Disorder in the Past Year to identify states with higher treatment needs.
• Model correlations between Binge Alcohol Use in the Past Month and Alcohol Use Disorder in the Past Year, segmented by state, for public health intervention planning.
• Assess the relationship between indicators of Received Mental Health Treatment in the Past Year and rates of Serious Mental Illness in the Past Year across different states.
• Investigate state-level trends for youth-specific measures like Alcohol Use Disorder in the Past Year (among people aged 12 to 20) and Tobacco Product Use in the Past Month.

Strengths

• Covers 35 distinct measures of substance use and mental health, providing a multi-faceted view of public health.
• Estimates are modeled for all U.S. states using small area estimation (SAE) methods, enhancing reliability for state-level analysis.
• Includes data for the civilian, noninstitutionalized population ages 12 and older, a key demographic for national health surveys.
• Provides p-value tables to assess statistical significance of differences between geographies.

Limitations

• Estimates are modeled, not raw survey counts, which may obscure underlying sample sizes and uncertainty for specific states.
• Data is presented primarily in HTML format (images of maps and tables), which is not ideal for direct machine processing or analysis.
• The temporal coverage is limited to the 2021-2022 period, preventing longitudinal trend analysis without combining with other data releases.

Provenance

Source

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, specifically the National Surveys on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH).

Collection Method

Modeled state estimates created using small area estimation (SAE) methods, combining state-level NSDUH data with other data from smaller geographies.

Time Range

2021-2022

Freshness

Last updated in September 2025, but the underlying data covers the 2021-2022 period.

Geography

United States, with estimates for all states.