Heroin Use Skyrockets in U.S.
Heroin-related overdose deaths in the U.S. have increased by nearly 300 percent in recent years, and a new report from the federal government shows people who use the drug are not confined to a particular income level or age group.
From 2002 to 2013, heroin overdose deaths in the country increased by 286 percent, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Food and Drug Administration. Most deaths involve the use of multiple drugs, and more than 8,200 people died of a heroin-related overdose in 2013 alone. The annual average rate of past-year heroin use in the U.S. also increased by more than 62 percent in roughly the past decade. "
Health officials say the trend stems in part from doctors prescribing opioids to treat chronic pain. The report found those who are addicted to prescription opioid painkillers – which can include Vicodin, OxyContin and morphine – are 40 times more likely to be addicted to or abuse heroin, and that 45 percent of people who used heroin were also addicted to painkillers. Because heroin, also an opioid, is cheaper than these drugs, those who begin with prescription painkillers often turn to it
"The chemical is essentially the same between prescription drugs and heroin," CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden said Tuesday in a call with reporters. "It's cheaper and widely available – it's driving this trend."
http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/data-mine/2015/07/07/heroin-use-skyrockets-in-us-cdc-says?int=a14709&int=9b7c08
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