Drug Overdoses Now Leading Cause Of Injury In Wisconsin, Report Says

Drug overdoses have become the leading cause of injury in 36 states, including Wisconsin, according to a national report.

The Trust for America’s Health has issued the report that drug overdoses have now surpassed motor vehicle-related deaths in most states.

Jeffrey Levi, the group’s executive director, said that drug abuse can have a cascading effect on people’s health.

“The overdose problem is not just related to prescription drugs, but where it leads, which is use of heroin and other injectable drugs, which then results in not just the threat of overdose deaths, but also outbreaks of Hepatitis C and HIV,” said Levi

According to the report, Wisconsin has the 29th-highest rate of overdose deaths using a three-year average from 2011 to 2013.

A state law passed last year gives all emergency responders the ability to be trained to administer Naloxone, a drug used to counteract overdoses.

Wisconsin also has a prescription drug monitoring program in which doctors, pharmacists and police can use to track drug purchases.

The report said that 25 states require use of the monitoring program, but Wisconsin doesn’t.

Officials with the Department of Safety and Professional Services, the agency that oversees the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP), said they have reduced “doctor shopping,” which occurs when a patient obtains prescriptions from four or more prescribers and four or more dispensers per calendar month. The PDMP has shown an average decrease of 26 percent per month in doctor shopping since its implementation in 2013.

The Trust for America’s report is called “The Facts Hurt.” It looks at 10 injury-prevention factors. These include drug monitoring programs, use of seat belts and ignition locks to prevent drunken driving. Currently, ignition interlock devices are required for all repeat OWI offenders and first-time offenders with a blood alcohol content of 0.15 and above.