The coronavirus pandemic has dominated public health talks since its inception more than a year ago, but it is not the only fatal threat facing Americans.
The opioid epidemic was accelerating early last year and caused 81,000 drug overdose deaths in the 12 months ending May 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the largest in history.
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“The disruption of daily life due to the COVID-19 pandemic has hit those with substance use disorder severely,” said CDC director Robert Redfield in a December release. “As we continue to struggle to end this pandemic, it is important not to lose sight of the different groups that are being affected in other ways. We need to take care of people who suffer unwanted consequences ”.
Data on the scope and number of victims of the epidemic are limited, but 37 of the 38 U.S. jurisdictions with available data on synthetic opioids reported increases in deaths from synthetic opioid overdoses, the CDC reported, and 18 of those had increased deaths in over half. Ten states reported an increase of more than 98% in deaths from synthetic opioids.
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Topping the list was West Virginia, according to an analysis of the available data CDC, FBI and the Substance Abuse Administration and Mental Health Services, conducted by Best Life. The state, which has a population of more than 1.7 million, has reported more than 2,000 people with illicit substance use disorder, 337 drug-related arrests and more than 61 overdose deaths per 100,000.
Delaware, Tennessee, Louisiana and Maryland followed, completing the top five states the epidemic hit. Meanwhile, Kansas was the least affected, and while more than 1,800 out of 100,000 residents were diagnosed with substance abuse disorder, drug-related arrests dropped to about 76, while overdose deaths were just under 14.
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