PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT from Cullman County Coroner Jeremy Kilpatrick
Heroin/Opioid Abuse is a SERIOUS problem in Cullman County.
***Heroin-related deaths are up 200% compared to the same time last year.***
Per the CDC in 2014:
More people died from drug overdoses in 2014 than in any year on record. The majority of drug overdose deaths (more than six out of ten) involve an opioid. (1)
And since 1999, the rate of overdose deaths involving opioids (including prescription opioid pain relievers and heroin) nearly quadrupled. (2)
From 2000 to 2014 nearly half a million people died from drug overdoses. 78 Americans die every day from an opioid overdose. We now know that overdoses from prescription opioid pain relievers are a driving factor in the 15-year increase in opioid overdose deaths. Since 1999, the amount of prescription opioids sold in the U.S. nearly quadrupled, yet there has not been an overall change in the amount of pain that Americans report. (3,4)
Deaths from prescription opioids—drugs like oxycodone, hydrocodone, and methadone—have also quadrupled since 1999.
I know that addiction is a disease. However there are organizations and programs throughout the County, State, and the U.S. that offer assistance. Faith Based Counseling, Traditional Counseling, Inpatient/Outpatient treatment facilities.
I strongly urge anyone who is addicted to any Opioid to seek help before you become a statistic. If you know anyone who is addicted please urge them to get some help.
REACH OUT TO YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS, FRIENDS OF FRIENDS, ETC. LET'S TRY AS A COMMUNITY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
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References
1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Increases in Drug and Opioid Overdose Deaths — United States, 2000–2014. MMWR 2015; 64;1-5.
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Available from URL:http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6043a4.htm…. Accessed August 17, 2015.
3. Chang H, Daubresse M, Kruszewski S, et al. Prevalence and treatment of pain in emergency departments in the United States, 2000 – 2010. Amer J of Emergency Med 2014; 32(5): 421-31.
4. Daubresse M, Chang H, Yu Y, Viswanathan S, et al. Ambulatory diagnosis and treatment of nonmalignant pain in the United States, 2000 – 2010. Medical Care 2013; 51(10): 870-878.
