Narcotics Agents: Oklahoma On Track To Set New Record For Overdose Deaths

Extra Oklahomans than ever are dying from drug overdoses.

Marc Woodward with the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics mentioned there are all the time some ups and downs in relation to drug overdose knowledge. However one drug particularly is up — means up.

“Fentanyl can be climbing at a speedy price. The truth is, sooner than every other drug class,” he mentioned.

Meth remains to be Oklahoma’s primary overdose killer, contributing to lots of the state’s complete overdose deaths from 2011 to 2021.

However practically a 3rd of deaths final yr had been attributable to fentanyl and this yr may very well be worse.

“299 final yr and we’re on tempo to surpass that this yr,” Woodward mentioned.

Woodward mentioned new legal guidelines regulating opioids over the previous few years have lower their over-availability and diminished prescription abuse deaths, however that is introduced in a brand new set of issues.

“Because of these victories in relation to prescription drug entry and overdoses, we’ve despatched a number of these opioid addicts to the road to feed their habit,” he mentioned.

And at an ever-increasing price, going to the streets means fentanyl, whether or not patrons understand it or not.

“Nearly all of the overdose deaths linked to fentanyl are sometimes these blue M30 counterfeits that look side-by-side identical to US oxycodone,” Woodward mentioned.

Woodward mentioned these overdose numbers may truly be severely undercounted, for good cause, due to elevated availability for police and residents for the overdose-reversing drug Narcan.

“We all know that as scary as these fentanyl deaths and overdose numbers are, they may very well be probably 5 to 10 instances greater had it not been for Narcan,” Woodward mentioned.

Brokers mentioned the fentanyl drawback is in all places.

Final week, federal brokers shut down a fentanyl and pretend Xanax pill-manufacturing operation in Tulsa, which they mentioned distributed 10,000 to 40,000 drugs per week all through the state and elsewhere.