Report: Stimulant use disorder up in Medicaid‐covered adolescents and young adults

Diagnoses of stimulant use disorder among adolescents and young adults covered by Medicaid have increased over the past two decades, researchers wrote in the February 2026 issue of JAMA Psychiatry. The prevalence related to stimulants other than cocaine, and raises concerns because of the recent rise in stimulant‐involved overdose deaths, according to the study, “Stimulant Use Disorder Diagnoses in Adolescent and Young Adult Medicaid Enrollees.” The article, by Greta Bushnell, Ph.D., and colleagues, also noted an increasing use of prescription and illicit stimulants.