Increases in Heroin Overdose Deaths — 28 States, 2010 to 2012

Increases in Heroin Overdose Deaths — 28 States, 2010 to 2012

Nationally, death rates from prescription opioid pain reliever (OPR) overdoses quadrupled during 1999-2010, whereas rates from heroin overdoses increased by <50%. Individual states and cities have reported substantial increases in deaths from heroin overdose since 2010. CDC analyzed recent mortal...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report Vol. 63; no. 39; pp. 849 - 854
Main Authors: Rudd, Rose A., Paulozzi, Len J., Bauer, Michael J., Burleson, Richard W., Carlson, Rick E., Dao, Dan, Davis, James W., Dudek, Jennifer, Eichler, Beth Ann, Fernandes, Jessie C., Fondario, Anna, Gabella, Barbara, Hume, Beth, Huntamer, Theron, Kariisa, Mbabazi, Largo, Thomas W., Miles, JoAnne, Newmyer, Ashley, Nitcheva, Daniela, Perez, Beatriz E., Proescholdbell, Scott K., Sabel, Jennifer C., Skiba, Jessica, Slavova, Svetla, Stone, Kathy, Tharp, John M., Wendling, Tracy, Wright, Dagan, Zehner, Anne M.
Format: Journal Article Newsletter
Language:English
Published: United States Center for Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 03-10-2014
U.S. Government Printing Office
U.S. Center for Disease Control
U.S. Centers for Disease Control
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Age Distribution
Age groups
Analgesics
Analysis
Death
Drug abuse
Drug overdose
Drug Overdose - ethnology
Drug Overdose - mortality
Drugs
Ethnicity - statistics & numerical data
Female
Health aspects
Heroin
Heroin - poisoning
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Morbidity
Mortality
Opioid analgesics
Overdose
Population dynamics
Prescription drugs
Public health
Racial Groups - statistics & numerical data
Sex Distribution
United States - epidemiology
Young Adult
United States
United States > US
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Description
Summary:Nationally, death rates from prescription opioid pain reliever (OPR) overdoses quadrupled during 1999-2010, whereas rates from heroin overdoses increased by <50%. Individual states and cities have reported substantial increases in deaths from heroin overdose since 2010. CDC analyzed recent mortality data from 28 states to determine the scope of the heroin overdose death increase and to determine whether increases were associated with changes in OPR overdose death rates since 2010. This report summarizes the results of that analysis, which found that, from 2010 to 2012, the death rate from heroin overdose for the 28 states increased from 1.0 to 2.1 per 100,000, whereas the death rate from OPR overdose declined from 6.0 per 100,000 in 2010 to 5.6 per 100,000 in 2012. Heroin overdose death rates increased significantly for both sexes, all age groups, all census regions, and all racial/ethnic groups other than American Indians/Alaska Natives. OPR overdose mortality declined significantly among males, persons aged <45 years, persons in the South, and non-Hispanic whites. Five states had increases in the OPR death rate, seven states had decreases, and 16 states had no change. Of the 18 states with statistically reliable heroin overdose death rates (i.e., rates based on at least 20 deaths), 15 states reported increases. Decreases in OPR death rates were not associated with increases in heroin death rates. The findings indicate a need for intensified prevention efforts aimed at reducing overdose deaths from all types of opioids while recognizing the demographic differences between the heroin and OPR-using populations. Efforts to prevent expansion of the number of OPR users who might use heroin when it is available should continue.
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ISSN:0149-2195
1545-861X
1545-861X