Does cocaine use in Australia vary by geographic location and gender?

Rates of lifetime and past year cocaine use among men and women in different geographic locations are presented in the graph below.

Among Australians living in major cities, 14% of men and 10% of women have used cocaine in their lifetime. 6% of men and 4% of women have used cocaine in the past 12 months.

Among Australians living in inner regional locations, 11% of men and 7% of women have used cocaine in their lifetime. 4% of men and 1% of women have used cocaine in the past 12 months.

Among Australians living in outer regional/remote/very remote locations, 8% of men and 4% of women have used cocaine in their lifetime. 2%* of men and 0.6%* of women have used cocaine in the past 12 months

Source: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). 2019 National Drug Strategy Household Survey (NCETA secondary analysis, 2021).

Please note: No statistical significance testing has been conducted on these data. As a result, no inferences can be made about whether the reported proportions are significantly different from one another.