ACCORDING TO A NEW STUDY, the US is in the midst of an opioid addiction epidemic that has claimed more than 70,000 lives from drug overdoses.
However, recent research suggests the opioid epidemic is not waning. According to a new study by researchers at the University of California, San Diego, the problem will only worsen in the future. A new threat, the COVID-19 pandemic. Lurks in wait to win and exploit a society that is more vulnerable than ever. However, it will soon be overshadowed by a much more serious threat: the coronavirus pandemics of the past.
IN DECEMBER, the CDC said that the number of overdose deaths during the pandemic had accelerated, driven by the rise in the number of synthetic opioids, which rose by 38.4% in the year to June 2020. The increase in overdoses and deaths is worrying, “said Dr. Michael O’Hara, a professor of epidemiology at the University of California, San Diego School of Public Health.
Opioid overdoses do not exist in a vacuum; forces that threaten mental health account for a much larger share of the total opioid overdose epidemic than the pandemic itself. The powerful who are there may be afraid of being infected by COVID-19, “O’Hara said.
Pandemic and Drug Increases
If you lose your job, you are stuck in your own home with no action to take, no access to medical care, no money, and no safe place.
The disruption of daily life caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has hit drug use disorders hardest, “Dr. Michael O’Neill, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), said in December. The same JAMA study of psychiatry found that suicide attempts increased by an average of 3.5 percent a year over the same period. Compared with 2.2 percent the previous year.
The need for effective treatment of substance abuse has never been greater, “he said. Vaccinations seem to be the light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel. Experts say America has yet to face the growing problem. And while its order has saved many lives, the savings come at a price. Social distancing has forced some to suspend their everyday activities such as work, school, family, and social life.
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