"Health & Medical News"

A new report from the U.S. Government Accounting Office (GAO) says that Mexican drug cartels now operate in communities across the U.S. and generate up to $23 billion in illicit revenues annually, the Washington Post reported Sept. 20.

GAO researchers said that 90 percent of all illicit drugs entering the U.S. in 2005 came via Mexico, up from 66 percent in 2000. The report estimated that the Mexican drug cartels generated more revenue than 40 percent of Fortune 500 companies.

The report, requested by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), chided the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy for failing to adequately coordinate U.S. antidrug efforts with those of the Mexican government, and documented a number of antidrug initiatives that had been bogged down by bureaucracy.

“The Office of National Drug Control Policy has to stop dropping the ball and doing sloppy work,” said Grassley. “They had plenty of time to forge a working relationship with the Mexican government, but it appears that nothing has been accomplished.”

However, Patrick Ward, assistant deputy director of ONDCP, said cooperation between the office and the Mexican government in recent months “has been absolutely phenomenal.”

The GAO report praised Mexico for extraditing more drug suspects to the U.S. for trial and for pouring more government resources and military troops into the battle against drug traffickers. But researchers also said that more drugs are flowing through Mexico to the U.S., fueled by growing demand.

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