EMCDDA trendspotter briefing: Impact of COVID-19 on patterns of drug use and drug-related harms in Europe

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EMCDDA trendspotter briefing: Impact of COVID-19 on patterns of drug use and drug-related harms in Europe

25 June 2020
European Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA)

Summary

Since the start of 2020, European countries have been experiencing an unprecedented public health threat with the emergence of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). In order to investigate the effects and implications of this pandemic for people who use drugs in Europe, the EMCDDA instigated a mixed-method trendspotter study to investigate the current situation. This briefing provides a snapshot of the state of play with respect to the impact of COVID-19 on drug consumption patterns and drug-related harms during the early stages of the pandemic.