The increase in deaths due to this opioid set off alarms in the Department of Health of the North American city. In the last year alone, the percentage of deaths grew by 12%.
Tuesday, September 26, 2023
According to the New York Department of Health, 81% of overdose deaths have a drug in common: fentanyl. So far in 2023 there are already 3,026 deaths, 12% more than in 2022 and the highest death record since the number of deaths from this drug began to be established in 2000. Fentanyl killed one New Yorker every three hours, according to statistics.
The images are shocking. Bent bodies, held for a while until they hit the ground. Entire neighborhoods in which people wander the streets with confused steps and lost gazes. “Overdose deaths reached unprecedented levels in the city in 2022. Disparities in deaths by race/ethnicity, age, income, and neighborhood have widened as the magnitude of the overdose crisis has worsened,” the report noted. Health Department.
Additionally, he highlighted that unequal access to the resources necessary for health and well-being is a product of structural racism and long-term disinvestment in communities.
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Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan warned that the opioid crisis “is killing a New Yorker every three hours” and recommended taking several measures such as carrying naloxone to reverse overdose, receiving training to use it and recognizing the signs of overdose.
He also warned that no one should use or allow anyone to use drugs alone and if they do, they should seek care, support and treatment. Additionally, he urged New Yorkers to have an “honest and non-judgmental” conversation about drugs and their risks.
The numbers of death
The data shows that African Americans had the highest rate of deaths and the largest absolute increase in the rate – from 2021 to 2022 – from 52 to 62 per 100,000 residents. Latinos rank second with a rate of 53.1 per 100,000 county residents.
As in previous years, adults ages 55 to 64 had the highest overdose rate, followed by those ages 45 to 54. Residents of the Bronx, a majority-Latino county and the poorest in the city, had the highest death rate in 2022, at 73.6 per 100,000 residents.
Department of Health data further indicated that the overdose rate among residents of high-poverty neighborhoods increased by 21%, going from 32.4 per 100,000 residents in 2021 to 39.3 in 2022. In 2022, residents of Very high-poverty neighborhoods had the highest rate of overdose deaths, at 72.8 per 100,000 residents compared to 21.8 in low-poverty neighborhoods.
They warn that fentanyl will win the war on drugs in the United States
What is fentanyl
It’s about a synthetic opioid up to 50 times more powerful than heroin and 100 times more powerful than morphine. According to the North American Department of Health, this drug has gained notoriety in recent years as a result of the pandemic.
Since 2000, more than half a million people have died from overdoses in the United States, most of them from this type of drug. The high addiction rate that fentanyl causes in users can be up to 50 times higher than that of any related substance.
Alert in Argentina due to the entry of a deadly drug
This narcotic is prescribed as an analgesic and anesthetic, considered the strongest opiate available for medical use. Its potency and immediate effects are behind the addiction it generates. Heroin, by comparison, provides a longer-lasting but less immediate high, making it easier to treat by emergency medical services in the event of an overdose.
Fentanyl is injected, but it is also applied in patches and taken in pills. The one produced in clandestine laboratories, unlike the pharmaceutical one, is the one behind the most deaths, since it is mixed with heroin. The cocktail is known as “Ace of Hearts”.
Carfentanil in Argentina
The only record of this opiate in the country occurred on February 2, 2022 in the Buenos Aires neighborhood of San Martín. More precisely at Gate 8. As a result of ingesting what was called “adulterated cocaine,” more than 80 people ended up intoxicated and 24 died.
Carfentanil is an opioid, although 100 times more potent than fentanyl. Regarding the cause of the 24 deaths, it was only confirmed in the investigation that the drug belonged to Miguel Ángel “Mameluco” Villalba’s organization and that the fatal doses contained “carfentanil.”
What remains to be found out is how a batch contaminated with a powerful opioid that cannot be found in our country arrived at the humble Puerta 8 sales stand. And why a drug that was meant to be “disposed of” ended up killing so many neighbors.
NT / Gi
2023-09-26 21:26:00
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