Addiction In West Palm Beach, Florida
The state of Florida has a complicated history with drug addiction. While the state has seen its fair share of tragedy from the current opioid epidemic, it also become home to a great number of addiction recovery and rehabilitation centers. West Palm Beach is no exception.
Opioids In West Palm Beach
In 2014, 1,225 people in Palm Beach County sought treatment for a prescription opioid addiction. This made it the second most reported addiction for people seeking recovery treatment, only after alcohol. However, despite attempts made by the government to fight the opioid epidemic, deaths caused by opioids have grown year over year. The Palm Beach County M.E. determined that 143 people had died from opioid use in 2012. That number grew to 569 deaths 4 years later, in 2016. That makes up nearly 76% of the total number of deaths caused by drugs and doesn’t include the additional 363 deaths where opioids were present, but not the cause.
While prescription opioid abuse is a problem in West Palm Beach, and across the country, the rise of opioid analogues is West Palm is one of the most concerning. Particularly the use of carfentanil, an opioid so potent that it takes as little as a third of a milligram to overdose.
Carfentanil Use Growing In West Palm Beach
Carfentanil is a lethal opioid that has been used more and more in recent years. Intended as a tranquilizer for elephants, carfentanil is 10,000 times more potent than morphine. There is no safe way to use it. Despite this, it has been involved in 85 deaths in Palm Beach County. Carfentanil-involved deaths even eclipsed the 83 deaths that involved Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid 80 times stronger than heroin.
While this could be due to people using it recreationally, it is more likely that dealers are using carfentanil to cut with other drugs. Despite the new laws that charge the premeditated dealing of fentanyl and carfentanil as First-Degree Murder, dealers are still using it as cheap filler to cut their costs. This can be seen as a majority of the reported deaths also contained another substance or combination of substances.
The Contamination Of Heroin In West Palm Beach
Heroin was involved in 97 deaths in Palm Beach County. Of those, only 20 of them contained heroin alone. The other 77 cases involved heroin being found in the deceased’s blood, along with a second, third, or even fourth substance.
143
deaths
In 2012, 143 people had died from the use of an opioid.
569
quantifier
By 2016, deaths from opioid had grown nearly 4 times to 569.
85
deaths
In 2016, carfentanil was found to be involved in 85 deaths.
Grey Death Has Come To West Palm Beach
The drug Grey Death is as ominous as it sounds. It is a designer drug that mixes heroin, fentanyl, another designer drug called U-47700, and other fentanyl analogues. The drug looks similar to concrete mix and gets its name from the lethal blend of opioids it contains. Grey Death is no doubt part of the cause of the spike in carfentanil- and fentanyl-related deaths.
Get Help During COVID-19
With just 30 days at a rehab center, you can get clean and sober, start therapy, join a support group, and learn ways to manage your cravings.
Finding Help In West Palm Beach
Finding help with recovery in West Palm Beach is more important now than ever before. With the sheer amount of cross-contamination of substances with lethal substances, any dose could be someone’s last. If you or someone you love suffer from addiction and are worried that it has become a life or death situation, do not wait. Contact a treatment provider today. They can discuss available treatment options with you.
