New York's Heroin Crisis Prompts Legislators to Act

The evidence is pretty irrefutable. There is a heroin crisis in American and it is effecting New York State as well.

A recent report by the state Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said that overdoes related heroin and opioids rose faster in 2014 in the state than in other areas.

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The report found that overdose death rates in the state increased faster over the previous decade than in nearly any other state for which date was made available.

Suffolk County had the greatest number of heroin overdose deaths and prescription opioid deaths in the state in 2014.

The Mid- and lower-Hudson Valley haven't been spared.

Orange County had 43 heroin deaths and 33 prescription deaths in 2014.

For statistics on the rest of the region, read the article here.

Lawmakers have taken notice of the severity of the situation.

On June 14, Governor Andrew Cuomo and legislative leaders announced an agreement on new legislation to combat heroin and prescription opioid abuse in the state.

The package of three bills address the crisis by limiting the over-prescription of opioids and get rid of barriers to access, including insurance, for inpatient treatment and medication.

For the complete article on DiNapoli’s report, click here. The article on the new legislation can be read here.