August 31st is International Overdose Awareness day. 2020 was a year with an increase in overdose deaths. "International Overdose Awareness Day is the world’s largest annual campaign to end overdose, remember without stigma those who have died and acknowledge the grief of the family and friends left behind. Time to Remember. Time to Act."

“More than 93,000 people died of a drug overdose in the U.S. last year — a record number that reflects a rise of nearly 30% from 2019, according to new data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Officials said the increase was driven by the lethal prevalence of fentanyl as well as pandemic-related stressors and problems in accessing care.

"This is the highest number of overdose deaths ever recorded in a 12-month period, and the largest increase since at least 1999," Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, told NPR.

Ten states are predicted to have at least a 40% rise in drug overdose deaths from the previous 12-month span, according to the CDC: Vermont, Kentucky, South Carolina, West Virginia, Louisiana, California, Tennessee, Nebraska, Arkansas and Virginia.

The provisional 93,331 U.S. drug overdose deaths are a sharp increase from the 72,151 deaths estimated in 2019. Deaths in 2020 from opioids alone — 69,710 — nearly eclipsed the total number of fatal overdoses in the previous year, although deaths involving other drugs such as methamphetamine and cocaine also contributed to the increase.

Roughly 57,000 people died from synthetic opioids (predominantly fentanyl) last year, compared with around 13,000 people who died from heroin overdoses.

Fentanyl's properties are similar to morphine — but it's "50 to 100 times more potent," according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. It is also frequently cut into other illegal drugs, including cocaine. That dangerous trend has triggered outreach efforts to train people in using naloxone, which can reverse an opioid overdose."

“More than 200 Nebraskans died of drug overdoses in 2020, an increase of nearly 43% from the previous year, according to a new federal report.

In the report, officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that Nebraska tallied 209 drug overdose deaths in 2020, compared to 146 in 2019. The country as a whole saw a new peak of 93,000 such deaths last year, an increase of 29% from more than 72,000 overdose deaths in 2019. The data are considered provisional, according to the agency.

“Methamphetamine has really dominated Nebraska for a long time,” she said, “but it’s now reaching unprecedented levels.”

Indeed, a separate new report from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Rural Drug Addiction Research Center indicates that methamphetamines are involved in more deaths than opioids in Nebraska. The state experienced a nearly 59% increase in overdose deaths involving psychostimulants — namely, methamphetamine — from 2018 to 2019.

Many treatment centers temporarily closed during the early part of the pandemic, and community support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous stopped meeting in person. Other services shifted to telehealth, but not all patients had access to internet connections or cellphones that would support those services."

As schools begin to reopen and kids go back to school, it is critical to educate ourselves and our teens on the dangers of substance abuse. There are drugs more popular during the school year that students feel are aiding them to succeed. In practice, these drugs could lead to serious issues.

August 31st is Overdose Awareness Day. In 2020 Nebraska's saw an increase in overdose deaths. We should remember the lives lost to this epidemic without stigma. We should stay educated on how to help prevent overdose.

For more information on Overdose Awareness Day. Click Here.

Too Good for Drugs and Violence is a comprehensive evidence-based substance abuse prevention curriculum for students K-12 applying interactive, social games and activities to promote healthy decision-making. Too Good for Drugs and Violence programs empower children with social-emotional learning and substance abuse prevention skills they need to lead happy and healthy lives. We are the only organization in Nebraska with trained program facilitators.

The Wellness Initiative for Senior Education Program is a wellness and prevention program targeting older adults, which is designed to help them celebrate healthy aging, make healthy lifestyle choices and avoid substance abuse. It provides valuable educational services to older adults on topics including medication misuse and management, stress management, depression, and substance abuse.

For more information on our programming & what we do, check out our website.

We're also working on Zoom lessons if parents, teachers or students are interested in joining please email coalitionrx@gmail.com and we will get some class times set up!