Health & Fitness

Berkeley Among Top 20 NJ Towns In Heroin Abuse Cases

The number triples Berkeley Township's total from 2014. Here's how the figure compares to the rest of New Jersey.

BERKELEY, NJ — Berkeley Township reported 310 heroin abuse cases in 2018, placing the town among the top 20 for New Jersey municipalities in that span. The figure ranks 17th overall in the state.

New Jersey has released its annual list of heroin-abuse cases reported by each community, revealing the most recent data of reported cases. The statistics were recently released by the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services in the New Jersey Department of Human Services, and they're based on the number of people seeking treatment for heroin abuse.

Berkeley Township experienced a spike in cases in 2015, which is around the time that heroin and opioid abuse became a more prevalent part of national public health conversations.

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The state Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services have cautioned that these numbers are reported by each community, so each jurisdiction is responsible for reporting its results fairly and accurately.

Here are Berkeley Township's numbers from the past 10 years for the number of people seeking treatment:

Find out what's happening in Berkeleyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

  • 2018: 310
  • 2017: 381
  • 2016: 248
  • 2015: 271
  • 2014: 98
  • 2013: 76
  • 2012: 121
  • 2011: 100
  • 2010: 83
  • 2009: 65

Last year, Berkeley Township had 7.44 cases per 1,000 people, which ranks 111th in New Jersey. Read more: NJ Towns With Most Heroin Abuse Cases: New Data 2019

Here's an archive of statistics from the state.

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