Overdoses from prescription drugs in Georgia have reached "epidemic" levels, claiming 584 lives in 2009, according to the state's chief medical examiner and a new report by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Deaths caused by prescription toxicity far outnumber deaths caused by illicit street drugs, the GBI reports, with just 86 people dying from street drug overdoses in 2009.
PDF: Full GBI report on prescription drug deaths
Prescription drug deaths are more common than homicides and account for nearly one-quarter of all examinations conducted in the state's crime lab in Atlanta, said Dr. Kris Sperry, the GBI's chief medical examiner.
"We started to notice this increase over the last six or seven years," Sperry said. "I'd say it's certainly to the level of epidemic at this point."
Sperry's crime lab examines suspicious deaths from every county and city outside the metro-Atlanta region. So while the data doesn't reflect trends of the entire state, locals say the numbers back up long-held views.
"We've seen an increase for years," said Vanita Hullander, Catoosa County coroner. "Years ago, a drug overdose was an anomaly. It was the kind of thing that made us say, 'Oh my goodness.' But progressively we've seen more and more."
More physicians are comfortable prescribing the drugs that can lead to overdoses - narcotics and sedatives, primarily - and consumers don't always understand the risk, Sperry said.
"It's not unusual for someone to take painkillers for prescribed uses and then, if their pain increases, they may take one or two more in a day," Sperry said. "They don't realize that just one additional pill can be a very toxic dose."
Mixing painkillers and sedatives - while suitable under some circumstances with doctor approval - can be fatal in other circumstances, Sperry said. It's also common for people to mix alcohol with other drugs, but that can be lethal too.
Even some addicted users don't think prescriptions are as harmful as street drugs.
"They have the perception that, since the drugs are legal, they aren't as harmful and they won't become addicted," said Rebecca Stein, director of the residential program at the Council for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services in Chattanooga.
And users don't always understand that prescriptions are many times stronger than what users would find in illicit street drugs.
PRESCRIPTION DEATHS
A new GBI report shows that deaths from prescription drug overdoses have increased in recent years and far outnumber deaths from illicit street drugs.*
Drug deaths in 2008:
Prescription - 496
Street drugs - 95
Combination - 47
Drug deaths in 2009:
Prescription - 508
Street drugs - 86
Combination - 76
Source: Georgia Bureau of Investigation
* Excludes Atlanta because the GBI does not handle autopsies for Atlanta municipalities.
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