Odds Of Dying From Accidental Opioid Overdose In US Surpass Those Of Dying In Car Accident

(CNN) — For the first time on record the odds of accidentally dying from an opioid overdose in the United States are now greater than those of dying in an automobile accident. The grim finding comes from the National Safety Council which analyzed preventable injury and fatality statistics from 2017. The NSC also found the lifetime odds of death for this form of overdose were greater than the risk of death from falls, pedestrian incidents, drowning and fire. Examining a variety of federal and state data the NSC found the lifetime odds of dying from an accidental opioid overdose were 1 in 96. For motor vehicle accidents the odds were 1 in 103 and 1 in 114 for falls. The lifetime odds of suicide were greater, at 1 in 88. The NSC highlights, however, that the odds given are statistical averages over the whole US population and do not necessarily reflect the chances of death for a particular person from a particular external cause. In addition they are lifetime odds, based on dividing the one-year odds by the life expectancy of a person born in 2017. In 2017 preventable injury deaths were 169,936 — an increase of 5.3% from the year before and a 96% increase compared to the figures in 1992. The organization aims to highlight these numbers in a bid to help prevent future deaths from preventable causes. “For too long, preventable deaths and injuries have been called ‘accidents,’ implying unavoidable acts of God or fate that we are powerless to stop. This...
Source: WBZ-TV - Breaking News, Weather and Sports for Boston, Worcester and New Hampshire - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health News CNN Local TV opioid crisis opioids Source Type: news