Deaths from Prescription Drug Overdose Skyrocket
By: Elsa Gillis
Updated: November 4, 2011
The number of deaths occurring from prescription pill overdoses has skyrocketed in the past decade, according to a new CDC report. Every year, nearly 15,000 die from these types of overdoses. One in 20 people in the US, ages 12 and older, used prescription painkillers for non-medical purposes.
The Prevention and Training director at The Insight House in Utica says one in four people that they see at their outpatient center have abusive issues with prescription or over the counter drugs. He says in a nation where there is medicine for everything, we need to understand how dangerous drugs can be. Vitagliano notes that the medical field is making strides to better communication to make it more difficult for people who aren't supposed to be on prescription medication to get them.
