Heroin and Prescription Drugs Deaths Out of Control in the U.S.
According to the Centers for Disease and Prevention, (CDC), drug related overdoses and deaths are out of control and have reached epidemic level.
In 2013 there were over 43,000 deaths or 120 a day caused by drugs, with heroin the leading drug of choice. Drug deaths are now greater than deaths from being shot or deaths from motor vehicle crashes. These numbers are two years old, and there is no way of knowing what the 2015 death toll will be, but we know that it is up if the epidemic prediction from CDC is accurate.
Why Heroin? Because it is cheaper than prescription drugs and is readily available everywhere in the U.S. Heroin has invaded the upper crust and poorest communities with equal speed and with the same results; increased overdoses and deaths, higher crime rate overall and more inmates behind bars.
The economic costs of those hooked on drugs is huge. The most recent data pertaining to the economic cost is from 2007 and was stated to be at $193 billion. One can only guess about 2015, but some have estimated the annual cost of lost productive time, healthcare and the judicial system including jails at over $300 billion.
The U.S. government has recognized the epidemic, resulting in more emphases on treatment and less on jail time. There are over 23 million Americans undergoing treatment and recovery today. The importance of this should not be lost on the U.S. citizens. The Obama administration has recently announced a Recovery Branch at the Office of National Drug Control Policy to support those in recovery.
The DEA recently reported a whopping 232 percent increase in drug arrests along the U.S./Mexico border. The DEA goes on to report that they believe there is a connection between drug cartels and street gangs. Which of course take us to the street level where drugs are an everyday occurrence in many communities. No city or county in the U.S. is exempt from the drug epidemic as recent local arrests have revealed.