The latest report card from the San Diego County Prescription Drug Abuse Task Force is a mixed bag.
The report card, which was released Wednesday, reveals 244 San Diegans died from an unintentional prescription drug overdose last year. That’s a six percent decline compared to 2013.
In contrast, 105 people died from a heroin overdose last year. That represents a 22 percent increase from the year before, and a 34 percent increase compared to the number of heroin-related deaths in 2010.
Task force member Tom Lenox is a supervisory special agent with the DEA. He said law enforcement has been trying to crack down on illegal prescription drug use.
“So when you do that, obviously people who have been using these drugs, have to look for an alternative," Lenox said. "And one of the alternatives is going to another opiate, which would be heroin.”
Lenox said one of the problems is heroin is cheaper on the street than prescription painkillers.
San Diego County Supervisor Dave Roberts said the rise in heroin-related overdose deaths is alarming.
“And unfortunately, it actually has ramifications for crime, it has ramifications for other things, such as unwanted pregnancies, so we’re really watching this closely to see what more we can do," Roberts said.
Nearly 28 percent of San Diego adults who entered treatment last year said heroin was their drug of choice; 13 percent of adults who were arrested in the county last year tested positive for heroin.
