I love statistics. I love history. I am a firm believer that statistics tell the story. It is always interesting to look at an issue at a statewide level. One of the hot topics lately has been prescription drug use and abuse.
Here is a statistical look at Colorado’s prescription medication problem from the Colorado Attorney General.
Just how bad has the problem gotten in Colorado? If deaths related to prescription drug abuse are any indication, the problem has almost doubled in the past 10 years. In 2000 there were 228 deaths attributed to abused prescriptions. In 2010 414 people lost their lives to prescription medication abuse and addiction.
What caused more deaths in 2010 drunk driving or prescription medications? I know that all my loyal followers guessed, due to the nature of this blog, that it must be meds and you are correct! Drunken driving incidents caused 127 deaths in Colorado in 2010, versus the 414 from prescription medications.
In 2010 more than half the drug-related deaths involved prescription medications in Denver.
If things don’t change they are not going to get any better. It has been estimated that the use of oxycodone in the Denver area has increased 53% in the past three years alone!
On the bright side, Coloradans tend to be environmental friendly. This is also true for the recycling of prescription medication where they recycled more than 35,000 pounds of unused medication in 2010.
On the dark side, it has been estimated that one in three high school students had already abused prescription medication. This is significantly higher than the national data of 1 in 5 teens (20.9%), reporting the abuse of prescription drugs in 2009.
Is Colorado an exception? No way! Its problem mimics that of every other state in the Union. Does this not frighten you? Do you think more drug classes will help? What solution can you provide?