FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 6, 2018

Contact: Matt Birchenough, Media Coordinator, 201-916-1032, media@drugfreenj.org

MILLBURN — Emergency room visits for opioid overdoses rose by 30 percent in the United States from July 2016 to September 2017, according to a report released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Opioid overdoses increased for men and women, throughout all age groups, and all regions, according to the report

The study’s findings represent yet more data contradicting many New Jersey residents’ attitudes on the potential risks of prescription opioids.

Nearly half of New Jersey residents who participated in a December 2017 survey released by the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey reported having little or no concern about the potential dangers of prescription pain medication to themselves or a family member.

“The CDC report released today is yet another indicator that the opioid epidemic is still raging in communities throughout the country,” Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey Executive Director Angelo Valente said. “No person or community, regardless of gender, race, economic standing or any other factor, is immune to this crisis.”

###

Best known for its statewide anti-drug advertising campaign, the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey is a private not-for-profit coalition of professionals from the communications, corporate and government communities whose collective mission is to reduce demand for illicit drugs in New Jersey through media communication. To date, more than $100 million in broadcast time and print space has been donated to the Partnership’s New Jersey campaign, making it the largest public service advertising campaign in New Jersey’s history. Since its inception the Partnership has garnered 166 advertising and public relations awards from national, regional and statewide media organizations.