Drug Overdose deaths continue to rise CDC data shows

In Minnesota, drug overdoses went up 32%

ROCHESTER, Minn. (WKBT) – Officials say drug overdoses are increasing since the pandemic began. More than 87,000 Americans died of a drug overdose in the one-year period ending in September of last year.

This is according to new preliminary data released from the CDC. In Minnesota, drug overdoses went up 32% during that same time. Many of these overdoses are caused by opioids.

“If you look back in the early, mid to 1990s when we first started to see this rise in opioids, the actual epidemic has been increasing every single year since then. It slowed down a little bit like Dr. Gazelka was talking about, but it hasn’t stopped and has continued to increase,” said Dr. Teresa Rummans, a Psychiatrist with Mayo Clinic.

Other than opioids, Minnesota has also seen an increase in drug overdoses due to meth, as well as an increase in deaths due to alcohol.

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