By Sean Lajoie and Vita Duva
According to the Vital Signs report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration, heroin use is on the rise across the United States.
While this increase has been noted among men, women, most age groups and all income levels, the greatest increase has been spotted in those who have not historically been noted for heroin use — women, citizens with private insurance and those with higher incomes.
Additionally, the report finds those using heroin are also using a number of other substances.
And with an increase in heroin use comes an increase in heroin overdose. Heroin-involved overdose deaths nearly doubled between 2011 and 2013. More than 8,200 people died in 2013 alone.
“Heroin use is increasing at an alarming rate in many parts of society, driven by both the prescription epidemic and cheaper, more available heroin,” CDC Director Tom Frieden said.
But where does New Jersey, and specifically Burlington County, rank in the rise of heroin?
According to data reports courtesy of Zachariah Hosseini, public information officer and spokesman at the state Office of the Attorney General, heroin-related deaths are on the upswing.
From 2011–2012, New Jersey saw a total of 2,239 drug-related deaths, of which 840 tested positive for heroin. Burlington County faced 122 of those drug-related deaths, of which 52 were heroin-related.
And, from 2013–2014, the state’s number of drug-related deaths rose to 2,626, of which 1,221 tested positive for heroin. Burlington County alone faced 69 of those drug-related deaths, of which 35 were heroin-related.
These reports account for the use of heroin, cocaine and prescription opiates, and include accidents, suicides and undetermined deaths.
Since the introduction of Narcan kits, responses to calls regarding overdoses have been improved.
“Once the officer arrives on scene, he/she needs to quickly determine what the cause is. When it is determined that the victim is suffering from an opioid overdose, then the officer will administer Narcan,” Lt. Stephen Riedener of the Mount Laurel Police said. “There is no doubt that the Narcan kits carried by the police save lives.The police are generally the first emergency responders to arrive on scene, so now overdose victims are receiving the medication much more quickly than they did in the past.”
Every officer in the Mount Laurel Police Department received training on how to use the Narcan kits when they first received them, and it is now part of the training for new officers. MLPD has used the kit nine times since July 2014 when they were first put in service.
However, these kits can only be helpful once users have overdosed; it has not helped the prevention of using the drug.
“I don’t think the Narcan kits cut down on heroin usage. On at least one occasion, we administered Narcan to the same person but on different days because they continued to use heroin. That person wasn’t deterred by the first overdose,” Reidener said.
There is a detailed presentation under the department of health section of the New Jersey state website that educates viewers on opiates and how to properly administer a Narcan kit if ever faced with a situation in which they need to treat an overdose.
For the report, the CDC and FDA analyzed data from the 2002–2013 National Survey on Drug Use and Health — sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the National Vital Statistics System.
“Approximately 120 people die each day in the United States of a drug overdose,” DEA Acting Administrator Chuck Rosenberg said. “The CDC’s Vital Signs illustrates two significant factors partly fueling that alarming number — the misuse of prescription drugs and a related increase in heroin use. We will continue to target the criminal gangs that supply heroin, and we will work to educate folks about the dangers and to reduce demand. In this way, we hope to complement the crucial efforts of the CDC and our nation’s public health agencies.”
As far as Mt. Laurel is concerned, the Mt. Laurel Police Department reports that, though it does not maintain data concerning heroin use or drug related deaths, data available from other sources clearly indicates heroin-related deaths have been on the rise in this region over the past several years.
