 The Marshall County Health Department was recently notified by the Indiana State Department of Health’s Overdose Surveillance Team of a spike in drug overdose events in Marshall County for the period of Nov. 24-25. The county experienced seven non-fatal drug overdoses in the two-day period. In response, the local health department will be hosting naloxone trainings on Dec. 11. The trainings will be open to the public and each participant will receive a free naloxone kit.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recently released a report showing a decrease in U.S. life expectancy for the third year in a row. The drop is primarily driven by an increase in suicide rates and drug overdoses. The CDC has finalized 2017 drug overdose mortality data which shows that more than 70,000 people died in 2017 due to a drug overdose, an increase of 10 percent from the previous year. Suicide rates have become the 10th-leading cause of death in the United States, and the second most common cause of death for people ages 10 to 34.
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A recent study published in the American Journal of Public Health confirms the rise in meth use among pregnant women and provides new data illustrating the scope of the problem. The research, which analyzed hospital discharge records between 2004 and 2015, found that as opioid use among pregnant women has grown in recent years, so has their use of amphetamines, and particularly methamphetamine. The increased rates of amphetamine use grew disproportionately in three regions of the United States — the South, Midwest and West.
Bloomberg Philanthropies will donate $50 million to states fighting the opioid epidemic, an effort to support existing programs and encourage new approaches. Pennsylvania, which suffered 5,388 drug overdose deaths in 2017, more than any other state, will receive the first grant, expected to total more than $10 million over three years. The organization plans to award more funding to states in 2019.
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