National Safety Council Alarmed by Sudden Increase in Prescription Opioid Overdoses

Immediate action is needed as America's deadliest drug crisis reaches a fever pitch

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Dec 14, 2015, 12:00 ET

The mission of the National Safety Council is to save lives by preventing injuries and deaths at work, in homes and communities and on the road through leadership, research, education and advocacy.

ITASCA, Ill., Dec. 14, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today the National Safety Council reacts to new data from the National Center for Health Statistics showing opioid painkiller overdoses in 2014 jumped to an all-time high after years of being relatively stable. In the wake of this news, the Council recommends lawmakers, doctors and the public take immediate actions to help curb the deadliest drug crisis in United States history.

Between 2010 and 2013, an average of 16,453 people died each year from prescription opioid overdoses; last year 18,893 people fatally overdosed on medicines that include Oxycontin, Percocet and Vicodin. [i] The surge in fatal opioid overdoses has led to poisonings becoming the leading cause of unintentional death among American adults – the first time since WWII that the top slot belongs to something other than car crashes.[ii]

"Prescription opioids have been a flashing red light for years, but as a society we have not heeded the data warning us of the deadly cost of addiction," said Deborah A.P. Hersman, president and CEO of the National Safety Council. "Our grace period is over. If we do not act quickly and deliberately, we will lose more people to preventable overdoses. Nothing is more tragic than that."

At the federal and state levels, the National Safety Council calls for:

The implementation of prescribing guidelines for physicians who are treating patients with chronic pain
DEA-required education and additional training for medical practitioners who prescribe opioids
Legislation that makes naloxone, an overdose antidote, widely available
Accessible and affordable treatment

Americans must advocate for their own safety, too. The Council calls on the public to:

Never share opioids. Three in four people who abuse prescription opioids get the drugs from friends or family.[iii] Sharing opioids also is a felony in most states and considered the legal equivalent of selling heroin.[iv]
Ask their doctors for alternative pain treatment. Research shows over-the-counter pain relievers are more effective at treating acute pain.[v]
Talk to children about not taking drugs that are prescribed to others. One in eight high school students admits to taking prescription painkillers nonmedically.[vi]

Visit nsc.org/rxpainkillers for more information.

About the National Safety Council
Founded in 1913 and chartered by Congress, the National Safety Council, nsc.org, is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to save lives by preventing injuries and deaths at work, in homes and communities, and on the road through leadership, research, education and advocacy. NSC advances this mission by partnering with businesses, government agencies, elected officials and the public on the leading causes of unintentional death, with a focus on distracted driving, teen driving, workplace safety, prescription drug overdoses and Safe Communities.

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[i] National Center for Health Statistics
[ii] According to Injury Facts 2015
[iii] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
[iv] NSC public opinion poll, 2015
[v] NSC white paper, Evidence for the efficacy of pain medications
[vi] National Institute on Drug Abuse

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SOURCE National Safety Council