In order to understand why it is so important to be able to recognize opiate addiction in a loved one, it is necessary to be aware of the severity of the opiate epidemic in the United States.
According to the Georgia Attorney General’s Office, the opiate addiction crisis is considered a national state of emergency in the US.
According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, greater than 130 people die every day from overdoses associated with opiate drugs.
In 2018, 10.3 million people abused prescription opiates, such as morphine, hydrocodone, and fentanyl.
That same year, 47,600 people died from opiate overdoses.
In 2016, fentanyl was associated with almost 50% of opiate overdose deaths, as stated by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Currently, fentanyl is being manufactured illegally and is often used to cut heroin, which makes it much more potent and more likely to cause deadly overdoses.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that, in 2017, the opiate overdose death rate was six times higher than it was in 1999.