New York and Other States Battle Teen Heroin Use, Overdose

Heroin abuse is on the rise across the United States and school authorities and parents are seeing the results. Heroin is now cheaper and purer than ever before.

According to local New York authorities, a small bag of heroin is cheaper than a six-pack of beer and is estimated to be 15 times purer than it was in the 1970s. The increased purity means that users can snort the heroin. Many teens have the mistaken idea that snorting the drug makes them less likely to become addicted to it.

Approximately 46 people in Nassau County, N.Y., died from heroin overdose. This represents an increase of 75 percent over the previous year. In Will County, Ill., 23 people this year have died from heroin overdose, compared to 16 last year. The number of heroin overdose deaths has tripled in Jefferson County, Alabama, from 6 in 2007 to 18 this year.

(Source: www.cbsnews.com)

Labels: drug overdose, heroin abuse

posted by Aspen Education Group @ 9:00 AM