The poorest, most oppressed portion of WV has the highest drug overdose rate. . . who woulda guessed. . .
How long will we ignore the tired, the poor, the huddled masses yearning to breath free right here upon our very shores? From the cold claustrophobic canyons of the inner city to the stifling endless hills on top of hills in Southern West Virginia it's the same old story: culture that has been destroyed and lives that have been wrecked by economic and social oppression.
Do we really care at all about our fellow Americans in this country?
March 16, 2008
Portrait of an overdose
Young men from state coalfields most likely to die, study finds
By Tara Tuckwiller
Staff writer
Who is overdosing in West Virginia?. . .
"A disproportionately high number were from the southwestern West Virginia counties - the classic coalfield area," said Aron Hall, CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer for the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources.
Also, West Virginians who live in poor counties are more likely to overdose, he said. . .
The average accidental overdose victim went to three doctors and three pharmacies to get controlled substances in the year before he or she died. One victim went to 23 pharmacies in West Virginia alone. . .
But no matter how many doctors or pharmacies a person uses, the doctors and pharmacies can always find out what controlled-substance prescriptions the patient is filling - in West Virginia, anyway. The state Board of Pharmacy keeps a database of every patient who fills a controlled-substance prescription within the state's borders, along with who prescribed it and which pharmacy filled it. Doctors and pharmacists have access to the database, so they can find out if a patient might be doctor-shopping for drugs to abuse or sell.
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