The Other Pandemic
“In the six months since Covid-19 brought the nation to a standstill, the opioid epidemic has taken a sharp turn for the worse. More than 40 states have recorded increases in opioid-related deaths since the pandemic began, according to the American Medical Association. In Arkansas, the use of Narcan, an overdose-reversing drug, has tripled. Jacksonville, Fla., has seen a 40 percent increase in overdose-related calls. In March alone, York County in Pennsylvania recorded three times more overdose deaths than normal.” NYT: ‘The Drug Became His Friend’: Pandemic Drives Hike in Opioid Deaths. (It’s got to be painfully ironic for these families to anxiously await a pandemic vaccine from the same industry that drove America’s other health epidemic.)