Opioid analgesics, or pain killlers, are the biggest contributers to the increase in unintentional overdoses. Opioids include oxycodone, methadone, hydrocodone, fentanyl and buprenorphine, which are usually prescribed for pain management. As sales of opioids have increased, so have the deaths associated with them. According to the CDC and the National Vital Staistics System:
- between 2004 and 2008, emergency room visits for opioid prescription drug abuse rose 111%
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Unintentional overdose from opioids exceeds the total number of deaths involving heroin or cocaine.
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Prescription opoid abuse cost the U.S. more than $8.6 billion in health care costs.
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Over 69% of people receive medications from friends or relatives for non medical purposes.
The impact of opiates on the workplace, according to a Quest Diagnostics report found that:
- the rate of employees testing positive for opiates rose by 18 percent between 2008 and 2009.
- And employees who tested for drugs after accidents were four times more likely to test positive for opiates than those tested before being hired.
Unintentional drug overdoses are the second leading cause of injury related deaths. Rates of death due to overdose in men exceed rates in women. And in some states, unintentional poisoning surpassed motor vehicle deaths among people 35 to 54 years old, or those of working age.