By Pat Anson, PNN Editor A new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that the vast majority of drug overdose death
A new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that the vast majority of drug overdose deaths in the United States involve illicit fentanyl and other street drugs.
The study, reported in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, analyzed data from 24 states and the District of Columbia enrolled in the State Unintentional Drug Overdose Reporting System (SUDORS) from January to June, 2019. SUDORS captures detailed information from toxicology reports and death scene investigations, and is considered more reliable than overdose data gathered from death certificates.
Among the 16,236 overdose deaths reported by SUDOR during the study period, illicitly manufactured fentanyl (IMF), heroin, cocaine or methamphetamine were involved 83.8% of deaths, either alone or in combination with other drugs. Nearly half of those deaths involved two or more illicit drugs.
About one in five overdoses involved prescription opioids such as hydrocodone, oxycodone, morphine and buprenorphine. The study did not indicate whether the medication was obtained legally or if it was borrowed, stolen or purchased illicitly. What is clear, however, is that street drugs are the primary driver of the U.S. overdose crisis. (Read more at link)
