The opioid-related death rate in Georgia outpaced the national average in 2017, according to federal data cited by, according to federal data cited by MyAJC.com.
Opioid-related deaths increased 14 percent nationwide in 2017, while Georgia's opioid-related deaths jumped 16 percent, according to data compiled by Pew Charitable Trust and released by the government in early 2018.
"I’m not surprised; I wasn't convinced we had hit the peak," Neil Campbell, the director of the Georgia Council on Substance Abuse, told MyAJC.com. "But it is disturbing."
Georgia reported 1,475 overdose deaths in 2017, up from 1,270 deaths in 2016.
Ms. Campbell attributes the increase, in part, to a lack of addiction funding from the state. Georgia has restarted its state addiction program. Georgia has allocated $250,000 to addiction-risk engagement efforts and neonatal units. Four million dollars has been allocated to opioid recovery programs.
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