Is Tennessee Ground Zero for the Opiate Crisis

The opiate addiction epidemic has reached crisis levels and is a national emergency.

What’s notable about the proliferation of opiate addiction is how it is affecting families in every corner of our nation – from rural areas to urban centers and all the suburban neighborhoods in between. Also, opiate addiction has hit families at every  economic level, rearing it’s head in wealthy suburbs as well as claiming lives and destroying families in lower income urban and rural areas.

Tennessee Has Been Hit as Hard as Anywhere

You may be surprised that Tennessee has just about as much claim to being “ground zero” for the opiate epidemic as just about anywhere else.

Consider these facts:

• The number of overdose deaths has exploded by more than 300 percent over the last two decades. ³
• In 2012, Tennessee became No. 2 in the nation for consumption of opioids (topped only by Alabama). ¹
• A 2012  survey of Tennessee 10th- and 12th-graders finds the average age at which they first abused prescription opioids was 14. ¹
• In 2013, Tennessee recorded 912 births of drug dependent babies. ²
• In 2015, 174 people died in crashes in which a driver either tested positive for drugs or an officer determined drugs contributed to the crash — an 89 percent increase in fatal crashes in which the driver was impaired by drugs in five years. ²
• In 2015, Nearly 5% of Tennesseeans are addicted to opiates. Tennessee has the second highest rate of opioid prescriptions in the country – more than one prescription fro every man, woman, and child. ¹

When it Comes to Opiates – Now is the Time to Take Action

The heartbreaking reality that so many families are discovering every day is that opiate users are facing the possibility of fatal overdose every time they use. There are many irregularities in the potency of street heroin and if the prescription medications are mixed (especially with alcohol), the risk of overdose increases dramatically.  If you are concerned about a loved one who is abusing opiates, we encourage you to take immediate action or risk forever losing your chance.

English Mountain Recovery is Here to Help 

If you have questions about getting help for yourself or a loved one who is abusing opiates, contact us today to have them answered.  We can also discuss your options for getting treatment, including verifying your insurance benefits. Call us today at (877) 615-8569.

Sources:

• The Tennessean, “How Opioids Took Hold of Tennessee” 3/26/17
• The Tennessean, “Opioid Crisis Timeline” 4/8/17
• The Tennessean, “Opioid Epidemic Getting Worse” 4/1/17