Fentanyl and COVID-19 May Have Made the Opioid Epidemic Even Deadlier

The recent surge in drug overdose deaths shocked even some of the most jaded observers of American addiction: 100,306 dead from April 2020 to April 2021, the first time the toll topped six figures in a 12-month period, according to provisional data from the National Center for Health Statistics. New data released yesterday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) point to one potential culprit: illegally manufactured fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that can be 50 times more potent than heroin. When used legally, with a doctor’s prescription, this class of drugs is meant to help people experiencing severe pain caused by cancer and other ailments. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Illicit fentanyl first appeared to replace or adulterate white powder heroin in the eastern U.S, but it’s increasingly spreading throughout the country, according to the new data. It’s reaching more illegal drug users, including users of other drugs as its mixed in with stimulants such as methamphetamine and cocaine, as well as users of more traditional opioids in parts of the U.S. where fentanyl has not previously been common. When comparing July to December 2019 with the same period in 2020, the CDC found that fentanyl-involved deaths rose significantly: in the West, they rose by 93.9% (from 955 to 1,852 deaths); in the South, 64.7% (2,636 to 4,342 deaths); and in the Midwest, 33.1% (1,510 to 2,010 deaths). One of the problems is that, as the National I...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized Addiction healthscienceclimate Source Type: news