Lopez notes that a 1950s American spent 75% of after‑tax wages on a bottle of vodka; today that share falls below 5%, roughly one‑fifteenth of the historic level. Declining alcohol taxes and rising incomes have slashed prices, while marijuana legalization cut Oregon’s gram price by more than 60%. Synthetic opioids like fentanyl have also halved in cost over five years.

The cheaper supply coincides with 48 million Americans classified as drug‑dependent, including alcohol, and about 70,000 overdose deaths annually. Alcohol alone claims roughly 178,000 lives each year. Economic research shows a 10% excise‑tax hike on booze trims consumption by 5% and can lower alcohol‑related mortality by up to 25%.

Lopez argues that modest price increases, whether through higher alcohol taxes or civil penalties for illicit drugs, reintroduce friction that nudges users toward treatment. States such as Alabama, Maryland and Utah have already demonstrated political viability of such measures. Making addiction services cheaper than the high they chase could shift the balance from intoxication to recovery.

Policymakers face a trade‑off: higher taxes disproportionately affect low‑income drinkers, yet the same groups bear the brunt of alcohol‑related crashes, violence and health costs. By pricing intoxication above the affordability of daily consumption, the market can self‑regulate, reducing the 48 million addicts and the associated societal burden.