The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that the total “economic burden” of prescription opioid misuse alone in the United States is $78.5 billion per year. This includes the costs of healthcare, lost productivity, addiction treatment, and criminal justice involvement.
It’s a big number, and translates to very real, equally sad outcomes. Data from 2018 shows that there are 128 fatal overdoses in the U.S. every day; and it’s a problem that’s getting worse in many communities.
Throughout the Coronavirus Pandemic, experts in addiction treatment say there is a looming wave of addiction data brought on by economic shutdown, loss of jobs, and months of being ‘locked down’.
Today we debrief the topic of addiction – speaking with Monika Salvage about the HEALing Communities Study in Cayuga County.
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