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Chronic Pain and Prescription Painkillers

Opioid Overdose Deaths by State, 2014

AK

WA

ME

MT

ND

VT

OR

MN

NH MA

ID

WI

NY

SD

MI

CT

WY

RI

IA

PA

NJ

NE

NV

OH

MD

DE

IN

IL

UT

CA

WV

CO

HI

VA

MO

KS

KY

NC

TN

OK

AZ

NM

SC

AR

Deaths per 1,000 residents 2.8 to 11.0

GA

MS AL

TX

11.1 to 13.5 13.6 to 16.0 16.1 to 18.5 18.6 to 21.0 21.0 to 35.0

LA

FL

Source: Centers for Disease Control, http://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/data/statedeaths.html

treating pain and relieving discomfort. It is also highly addic- tive and can be dangerous. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), at least half of all opi- oid overdoses in the United States involve a prescription opi- oid. And in 2014, over 14,000 deaths occurred because of pre- scription opioid overdose. Similarly, the number of deaths from opioid abuse in certain Canadian provinces have increased over the years. From 1991 to 2010, the opioid-related mortali- ty rate in Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario increased 242 percent. And in 2010, opioids were the cause of death for 12.1 percent of Ontario individuals aged 25 to 34.