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Report: Youth drug overdose deaths up in 35 states over a decade

Trisha Thadani
USA TODAY

Corrections and clarifications: The original image with the story has been replaced with the current photo.

Thirty-five states saw youth drug overdose deaths increase dramatically in the past decade, according to a new report. And in five states – Kansas, Montana, Ohio, Wisconsin and Wyoming – the overdose death rates more than quadrupled.

Drug overdoses were the leading cause of injury death in 2013,  exceeding that of motor vehicle crashes,  says the report released Thursday from Trust for America's Health, a national non-profit group that watchdogs public health issues.

Reducing Teen Substance Misuse: What Really Works ranks states on their actions to curb teen substance abuse — from alcohol to opioids — among 12- to 25-year-olds in the U.S from 1999 to 2013. 

Of the 35 states that have seen an increase in youth overdose deaths from 1999 to 2011, rates more than tripled in 12 states (Arkansas, Delaware, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New York, Oklahoma, Utah and West Virginia).

While Kansas, Montana, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Wyoming saw the biggest increase in youth overdoses in the same period, those states do not currently have the highest rates in the country. Current rates are highest in West Virginia, where 12.6 per 100,000 youths overdosed from 2011 to 2013 — compared with North Dakota, where only 2.2 per 100,000 youths overdosed in the same time period, according to the report.

"More than 90 percent of adults who develop a substance use disorder began using before they were 18," Jeffrey Levi, executive director of Trust for America's Health, said in a press release.

The amount of prescription painkillers prescribed and sold in the U.S. has nearly quadrupled  since 1999, and prescription drug overdoses accounted for more than half of the all drug overdoses in 2013. Nationally, males are 2.5 times more likely to overdose as females, according to the report.

"The increase in youth drug overdose deaths is largely tied to increases in prescription drug misuse and the related doubling in heroin use by 18- to 25-year-olds in the past 10 years – 45 percent of people who use heroin are also addicted to prescription painkillers," the report said.

The report highlights 10 indicators of policy strategies that could help curb substance abuse in the younger population. These include limiting access to the drugs, increased funding for treatment facilities and improving counseling, early intervention strategies and recovery support.

“Achieving any major reduction in substance misuse will require a reboot in our approach – starting with a greater emphasis on preventing use before it starts, intervening and providing support earlier and viewing treatment and recovery as a long-term commitment," Levi said.

Follow USA TODAY reporter Trisha Thadani on Twitter: @TrishaThadani

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