to the Challenge of Reducing Cocaine Abuse

Cocaine abuse remains a major U.S. public health problem. The number of frequent cocaine users (those who use once or more per week) remains stable at 500,000-750,000 individuals (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration 1996a), as many as half or more of newly arrested felons test positive for recent cocaine use (National Institute of Justice 1996), and demand for treatment for cocaine abuse is increasing (National Association of State Al-cohol and Drug Abuse Directors 1996), as is the frequency of emergency room visits for cocaine-related problems (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Ser-vices Administration 1996b). While there is progress in the development of effective treatments for cocaine abuse, high rates of early attrition and contin-ued drug use remain common (Higgins and Wong 1998), leaving no question about the need for additional and more-effective treatment interventions. Also important to keep in mind is that the majority of cocaine and other drug abusers are not enrolled in formal substance abuse treatment (Regier et al. 1993). Thus, strategies are needed for reducing cocaine abuse in other settings. Lastly, as i