California Among The US States Least Affected By The Opioid Epidemic
Opioids have taken the lives of thousands of Americans. In 2017, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services declared the epidemic a public health emergency. A report issued Tuesday shows how California is being affected by the crisis.
Despite the increase in opioid-related death rates nationwide, not all states have felt the impact equally. When comparing the age-adjusted opioid overdose death rate in each state, states in the West have done better than states in the East, especially the Rust Belt, according to a report released Tuesday by www.expertinsurancereviews.com.
Of those states least affected by opioid deaths, California was the eighth, behind Kansas (#7) and ahead of Idaho (#9).
For every 100,000 Californians, the overdose death rate is 5.3. The total number of opioid deaths in 2017 was 2,199, which is a 17.8% change over the last decade. The most affected age group is 55-59 years -- 10.6 per 100,000. The most affected county is Humboldt County with 20.2 per 100,000.
Here are the states least affected by the crisis:
- Nebraska
- Hawaii
- Montana
- South Dakota
- North Dakota
- Texas
- Kansas
- California
- Idaho
- Mississippi
Here are the states most affected by the crisis:
- West Virginia
- Ohio
- District of Columbia
- New Hampshire
- Maryland
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Kentucky
- Delaware
- Connecticut
A U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report showed the crisis has deepened since 2013, with fentanyl and other strong synthetic opioids contributing to a higher number of deaths. Overall, opioid-related death numbers rose through 2017 before leveling off last year at about 47,000.
