Deaths from prescription opioids have more than quadrupled since 1999, according to the CDC
80% of new heroin users get their start on prescription painkillers
In many cases, users become addicted to painkillers and then transition to heroin as it is cheaper, more potent, and often times easier to find
In 2012, 259 million prescriptions were written for opioids, which was more than enough to give every American adult their own bottle of pills
On an average day in 2016, more than 650,000 opioid prescriptions are dispensed, which adds up to 237 million for the year and is actually a small step in the right direction
In 12 states, the number of prescriptions written in a year exceeds the number of people living in the state
Many heroin users overdose on heroin laced with fentanyl, as the two drugs can look identical, but fentanyl is up to 50 times more powerful than heroin
Baltimore has an estimated 21,000 heroin addicts, which is over 3% of the city’s population
Some rural areas are worse off than the worst urban areas regarding opioid addiction
In 2016 alone, 2.3 million Ohio patients — roughly 20 percent of the state’s population — were prescribed an opioid
70 percent of infants placed in Ohio’s foster care system are children of parents with opioid addictions
4,149 people died from overdoses last year in Ohio, a 36 percent increase from 2015 when the state led the nation in fatal overdoses
From 2010 through 2013, female heroin overdoses increased from 0.4 to 1.2 per 100,000. Tripled in 3 years
Women are more likely to have chronic pain, be prescribed prescription pain relievers, be given higher doses, and use them for longer time periods than men. Women may become dependent on prescription pain relievers more quickly than men
20,101 overdose deaths related to prescription pain relievers, and 12,990 overdose deaths related to heroin in 2015
94% of respondents in a 2014 survey of people in treatment for opioid addiction said they chose to use heroin because prescription opioids were “far more expensive and harder to obtain”
People often share their unused pain relievers, unaware of the dangers of nonmedical opioid use. Most adolescents who misuse prescription pain relievers are given them for free by a friend or relative
The prescribing rates for prescription opioids among adolescents and young adults nearly doubled from 1994 to 2007
Americans consume up to 80% of the world’s prescription opioids
Mexican heroin production increased from 8 metric tons to 50 metric tons from 2005 to 2009
