“One person dies every 19 minutes from prescription drug abuse in the United States”
– CDC, 2012
The Problem
“Drug overdose deaths and opioid-involved deaths continue to increase in the United States. The majority of drug overdose deaths (66%) involve an opioid. In 2016, the number of overdose deaths involving opioids (including prescription opioids and heroin) was 5 times higher than in 1999. From 2000 to 2016, more than 600,000 people died from drug overdoses. The amount of prescription opioids sold to pharmacies, hospitals, and doctors’ offices nearly quadrupled from 1999 to 2010, yet there had not been an overall change in the amount of pain that Americans reported” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2017). Opioid Addiction: an epidemic.
The Solution:
Primary Prevention. Let’s come together and prevent opioid addiction and stop the increasing trend. Together, we can Plan to Make a Change. Together We are the Change. A simple Pledge to Be the Change can help one more person from becoming a victim of opioid addiction through education and prevention.