
Heroin was the deadliest overdose drug, involved in 59% of deaths in 2015.
The rate of people dying from drug overdoses jumped for the fifth-straight year, to 13.6 for every 100,000 residents — a 66% jump from 2010.
The heroin overdose rate soared even more — by 158% over the same period.
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“This new data underscores the deadly toll the opioid epidemic is taking on too many families in our city, and we are steadfast in our commitment to tackle this crisis,” said First Lady Chirlane McCray, who is heading up an effort to tackle substance abuse and mental illness.
Nearly 700 pharmacies in the city are now selling Naloxone, which can reverse the effects of an overdose without a prescription.
Heroin was the deadliest overdose drug, involved in 59% of deaths in 2015. The threat from fentanyl, a potent opioid painkiller, was also growing Naloxone playing a role in 16% of deaths, up from no more than 3% over the last decade.
White New Yorkers had the highest heroin overdose rate, but the rate grew fastest among Latinos — jumping 51% between 2014 and 2015.
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Drug overdose deaths were the worst in the Bronx, where 22.6 of every 100,000 people fell victim — a 46% jump from the previous year.