Narcotic pain relief drug overdose deaths a national epidemic

Unintentional overdose deaths in teens and adults have reached epidemic proportions in the US. In some 20 states in 2007 the number of unintentional drug poisoning deaths exceeded either motor vehicle crashes or suicides, two of the leading causes of injury death. In a new commentary article, physicians cite data noting that in 2007 unintentional deaths due to prescription opioid pain killers were involved in more overdose deaths than heroin and cocaine combined.

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