The Problem

Heroin, Synthetic Opioids, and Prescription Drugs

Unfortunately, prescription drug abuse can often lead to illegal drug use.  Nationwide, among new heroin users, 75 percent report having abused prescription opioids before using heroin.1

Florida opioid deaths chartParticularly in Florida, there has been a dramatic increase in deaths related to synthetic opioids (mainly fentanyl) in recent years. Between 2012 and 2017, these deaths jumped more than 1,000 percent (from 162 to 2,126).2

 

 


1Heroin Overdose Data. Center of Disease Control and Prevention. Source: https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/data/heroin.html
2Florida Opioid Summary. Source: https://www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/opioids/opioid-summaries-by-state/florida-opioid-summary

Drug-Related Overdoses

In 2017 there were more than 3,200 opioid-related overdose deaths in Florida.

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