Mich. Drug Overdose Deaths Up 14%

[zachw]

 

Heroin and painkillers are continuing to wreak havoc on Michigan as drug overdose deaths are up 14%, claiming the lives of 1,745 people in 2014, according to the latest state data released today.

 

The total number of drug poisoning deaths statewide increased from 1,535 in 2013 to 1,745 in 2014 — continuing an upward trend since 2012 — and was the No. 1 cause of injury-related deaths that year, according to the Michigan Department of  Health and Human Services. The agency stresses that this problem has touched every corner of the state — urban, rural, rich, poor — and the public's help is needed to eradicate it.

 

“We are coming together to reverse this trend that is hurting Michiganders across every geographic and demographic category,"  Lt. Gov. Brian Calley, chair of the state’s Prescription Drug and Opioid Abuse Task Force, said in announcing the latest data. " No family is immune from this so all families must come together to fight the stigma of addiction and know that it’s okay to ask for help. ”

 

Across metro Detroit, here is how many overdose deaths the following regions saw in 2014:

 

 Detroit: 132

 Wayne County (excluding Detroit): 322

 Oakland County: 127 

 Macomb County: 249

 Washtenaw County: 65

 

According to the data, heroin-related deaths were more than three times higher among men than women  in 2014. The rate for heroin-related deaths was highest among young adults aged 25-34  — 11.3 per 100,000.  Adults ages 35-44 had the highest rate for deaths involving opioid analgesics — painkillers — 12 per 100,000. Moreover, men died at a higher rate than women from opioid and heroin use (21.4 deaths of men per 100,000, compared to 14.1 deaths among women), according to the data.

 

State health officials say the number of drug poisoning deaths had appeared to level off in the few years prior to 2012,  following a general rise since the late 1990s. But the numbers have more than tripled since then.In 1999, for example, there were 455 drug poisoning deaths in Michigan, compared to the 1,700 plus in 2014.Some highlight's from the new report:

 

- Michigan has seen a four-fold increase in accidental fatal drug poisonings since 1999. In three years alone,  4,772 Michigan residents died between 2009- 2012 due to accidental overdoses. 60% were men; 40% women.

 

- 44 people die in the United States every day from an overdose of prescription painkillers, 8 more than cocaine and heroin combined.

 

- In 2014, prescription drug abuse accounted for nearly 22,000 drug overdose deaths nationwide (half of all drug overdoses). Of these, 16,000 were related to painkillers; 7,000 involved tranquilizers.

 

- The U.S. constitute less than 5% of the world population, but Americans consumes  80% of the world's supply of painkillers.

 

The new data comes as health, legal, and law enforcement officials continue efforts to combat painkiller and heroin use in the state, targeting everyone from crooked doctors and pharmacists to patient recruiters and street dealers who push prescription pills on the black market for up to $100 a pill. And when the pills become too expensive, addicts turn to a  cheaper alternative: heroin.

 

"The increase in drug overdose deaths has certainly grabbed our attention," said U.S. Attorney Barbara Mcquade, whose office has prosecuted dozens of individuals in recent years for peddling prescription drugs on the black market.

 

McQuade's latest  approach to combating drug overdose deaths has been  hitting drug dealers with stiffer penalties — such as life in prison — if they sell drugs that wind up killing someone.  Last May, for example, federal prosecutors charged four local men for allegedly contributing to the overdose deaths of three men. Among those charged was  Zachary R. Burdette, 29, of Ypsilanti, who allegedly delivered a 10th of a gram of heroin to a man the night before he died. It was laced with fentanyl.

 

The victim was found by his mother, slumped over in his bed with a syringe in his hand.

 

"Son, it's been one month since we lost you," the grieving mother, Delanna Strickland, wrote on her public Facebook page. "The pain runs even deeper than that morning I found you. Most nights I wish I could join you, because I know when I wake up (you're) the first thing on my mind ... I feel like a zombie.I find no joy or laughter in my life any more."

 

McQuade and others note that drug addiction can happen to anyone. For example,  she said, some people become addicted to prescription pills following surgery, dental work, accidents, sports injuries and other incidents that involve the legitimate use of pain medication.  But once a prescription runs out, people might then seek the more expensive pills on the street. And when the  money runs out, they switch to  heroin.

 

"Heroin overdoses occur because the product on the street may be very potent or contain the extremely powerful drug fentanyl," McQuade said.

 

Heroin is especially dangerous when mixed with fentanyl, a pain killer that is 15 to 20 times more potent than heroin.

 

McQuade warned: "A heroin user takes great risk about the purity of the drug he or she is buying."

 

From the Freep.

[t-pain]

when calley organized to crush the medical marijuana autism condition petition , he was dooming many children and adults to death by toxic pharmacueticals.

[cristinew]

More Pain Contracts   more deaths,   They are taking away Medical Cannabis and forcing pain patients into more Opiods  Shame on them drug dealer s,

[Alphabob]

Most people do not need pain medications as strong as oxycotin or fentanyl. These were initially meant for terminal diseases and late stage cancer, not back pain or less severe alignments. It wasn’t until a company known as Purdue came along and committed fraud that the opioid epidemic started. They began writing/distributing educational material claiming oxycotin was a delayed release formulation and therefore not as addictive, didn’t need increasing dosage over time and could be used for most pain. Of course, all of this was a lie and they knew it. Then it really got going with Florida’s lack of laws and prescription tracking. It is a shame that the family responsible for America’s heroin epidemic has been rewarded with a spot in the top 20 richest. Pay attention criminals and hardcore drug dealers, you’re doing it all wrong.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDkn2Xzrs4U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNOHAJs9dBY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sg-E7fYAGvU
http://www.alternet.org/drugs/oxycontin-clan-americas-wealthiest-families

 

Who’s really to blame for letting this get out of hand? The DEA.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/10/21/dea-secretly-oks-killer-quantities-of-oxy-and-morphine.html

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/2/29/1474123/-DEA-FAIL-Medical-Cannabis-Chronic-Pain-and-The-Heroin-Epidemic

 

“States that have legalized marijuana for managing chronic pain have significantly fewer deaths from prescription painkiller overdoses each year, according to a new study published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine.”

[trichcycler]

I recall the first full page advertisement Parke Davis placed in our state newspapers. The top half of the ad purported their cocaine would help aid in the tired mundane factory worker life while the bottom half of the ad told of their heroin being able to help with winding down after a hard days work.

 

would the dea give cocaine importation permissions to another cola maker today ? how much of those tons a year go missing?

[t-pain]

i doubt coca-cola's coca leaves go missing, grass.

 

plenty of easier ways to get cocaine into the usa. including even growing coca trees in the warmer states.

[Alphabob]

Unfortunately some of the victim’s families and media are trying to frame marijuana or medical marijuana as the real problem. The actual science says that 80% of those using heroin were initially using opioid related pills like oxycontin. It also says that cigarettes and alcohol are the real gateway drugs, which lead to things like pills or marijuana. Possibly the greatest confusion for younger people is marijuana being schedule I, making other drugs seem less dangerous and more acceptable to abuse.

 

http://www.hometownlife.com/story/news/local/birmingham/2016/03/07/mom-former-heroin-addict-one-lucky-ones/81454662/

“Pam Feinberg watched helplessly as her son went from smoking marijuana at the age of 14 to shooting heroin at the age of 20.” “From disappearing spoons to missing money, she watched a trail of deception unfold in her home that started with her son’s marijuana use. She was sending him to see a therapist twice a week, but the drugs continued.” “At the age of 18, her son received a medical marijuana card from the state of Michigan. Feinberg said he lied about the reasons he needed a card.” "Looking back, Feinberg admits she should have intervened sooner when she first learned her son was smoking marijuana. Along those lines, she warns people to examine their behavior if they find themselves smoking marijuana at least once a day." “When you’re smoking on a daily basis, there’s a problem”

Edited March 8, 2016 by Alphabob

[t-pain]

that story is useful ... "sending him to a therapist 2x a week" didnt help any.

 

too bad she never talked to her kid like a real person and instead paid someone hundreds of dollars an hour to do it.

[trichcycler]

i doubt coca-cola's coca leaves go missing, grass.

 

plenty of easier ways to get cocaine into the usa. including even growing coca trees in the warmer states

easier than stealing from work? I witnessed many thieving people at the work places I've been. Some were silly and some ingenious heists. Stocked Cocaine may be one of those work place items that would never get stolen I suppose.

[imiubu]

Yep, in the mid-late 70's ours came from Parke Davis in the D... I kid you not.

[Wild Bill]

Yep, in the mid-late 70's ours came from Parke Davis in the D... I kid you not.

There's a great deal of diversion in the pharmaceutical industry. Things disappear all along the chain, from the factory to the warehouse.

 

I had a friend who was a pharmacist and five out of eight neighborhood pharmacies he worked at were selling narcotics under the table.

 

Another source is always seniors who sell their meds so they can have money for living expenses.

[trichcycler]

There's a great deal of diversion in the pharmaceutical industry. Things disappear all along the chain, from the factory to the warehouse.

 

I had a friend who was a pharmacist and five out of eight neighborhood pharmacies he worked at were selling narcotics under the table.

 

Another source is always seniors who sell their meds so they can have money for living expenses.

They need to take some tips from the Cola giant eh