Question

Can I get some information on supporting either demand side or supply side policy to combat illegal drug use? I have to write a paper on it and I'm stuck on where to begin.

Answer 1

Demand Side policies :-

The demand side policy is generally include those laws that illegalize drug use in the market. Some of the programs that prevented use of drugs in the market were 1970's methadone clinics, just say no campaign, D.A.R.E. program and the Montana Meth project in the 1980's.

These programmes are designed to reduce the demand for drugs in the market .This can be explained using the above figure where these programs leads to decrease in demand from D to D1 thereby shifting the equilibrium point from point a to point B and decreasing the quantity of drugs from Q1 to Q2 .

Supply Side policies :-

The supply side policies includes interdiction and destruction of transport of drugs, destroying drug production facilities ,eradication of such crops and pressurizing the foreign governments to help reduce exports of drugs to United States

Elastic demand of drugs :-

When the demand for drug is relatively elastic the supplied side policies for the quantity of drugs to fall from Q1 to Q2 which is a larger amount in comparison to inelastic demand thereby equilibrium point shifts from point a to point B.

Inelastic demand :-

In case of inelastic demand which is represented in the above figure, the supply side policies do not generate very large reductions in drug use but do lead to large increases in drug prices . Thus the quantity reduction is very small from Q1 to Q2 ,however the price increases much higher that is from P1 to P2.