Is Accidental Overdose a Leading Cause of Death In the US?

Has Accidental Overdose Become a Leading Cause of Death In the United States?

Posted on February 11, 2015 by Shapiro Law Group

Pill mills have been a serious problem in Florida, leading to tens of thousands of accidental overdoses on dangerous opiate medications. Florida is not the only state that has an issue with overprescribing pain pills, as a recent grand jury indictment of a Kentucky doctor shows.

After five patients died of accidental overdose from medications that included oxycodone, and hydrocodone, the Kentucky pain doctor is now facing a life sentence in prison if convicted. According to the indictment, the physician ran the Advanced Pain Management Center, a pain treatment center that recently came under investigation from the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for seeing over 100 patients in less than a week.

How Many People Die From Accidental Overdose?

Accidental overdose was a leading cause of injury and death in 2012. The Centers for Disease Control statistics show that it killed 35,600 people in 2013, with 16,000 of those cases caused by opiate-based painkiller medications.

How Has The Federal Government Responded to Accidental Overdose Deaths?

Federal changes to how some painkillers can be prescribed attempted to reduce drug abuse by making it more difficult for doctors to prescribe opioid medications. Hydrocodone combination medications were reclassified as schedule II substances, meaning that prescriptions for the drug will not require close monitoring by pharmacies and limiting how many days a patient may receive the prescriptions.

Medication errors are a common cause of death and serious injury in medical malpractice cases. We encourage our readers to read more about medication errors on our website.

Shapiro Law Group – Medical Malpractice Attorneys Serving the Tampa Bay Area

Did You Know? Statistics on accidental overdoses show that it has surpassed auto accidents as a leading cause of death in the United States.

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