Nearly $4 million has been awarded to the California Department of Public Health to help prevent deaths and injuries caused by abusing prescribed opioids like OxyContin, Vicodin, and Percocet.
Misuse and overdose of prescribed opioids is part of a national epidemic. According to a press release from CDPH, 16,000 people died from prescription opioid overdoses in the U.S. in 2013.
In California, its northern half is seeing a large share of the abuse – not only of prescription opioids, but heroin too.
From 2006 to 2013, Shasta County saw overdose rates triple the state average. Eight in 10,000 residents visited the ER or were hospitalized because of an opioid or heroin overdose. Humboldt, Lake and Plumas counties saw even higher rates. Plumas had the highest rate in the state: 9.1 overdoses per 10,000 residents.
CDPH’s work on the grant will focus on prescribed opioids, particularly on creating awareness about abuse and advocating for safe prescriptions. The grant is for $3.7 million over the next four years and was awarded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. California is one of 16 states in the U.S. to receive the funding.