Friday, April 9, 2021
WASHINGTON (Sinclair Broadcast Group) — Early government data confirmed the worst fears that the COVID-19 pandemic is fueling the drug addiction crisis and opioid deaths are skyrocketing.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported preliminary data that 88,295 people died from a drug overdose in the months between August 2019 and 2020, marking a 27% increase over the previous year. Opioids and synthetic opioids, like fentanyl, drove the most fatalities.
Overdose deaths were already accelerating in the months before the pandemic. In 2019, the United States saw the highest recorded number of drug overdose deaths in its history. Social isolation, financial insecurity, unemployment and the loss of family and friends to COVID-19 made the situation that much worse.
Addiction specialists reported anecdotally about increased relapses as treatment programs were disrupted and people were cut off from their regular support networks. The CDC documented increasing reports of depression, anxiety and substance abuse, particularly among younger Americans. …
https://fox11online.com/news/nation-world/covid-19-pandemic-fuels-record-high-drug-overdose-deaths
