The opioid crisis in Pennsylvania appears to have gotten worse last year.
There were more overdose deaths in Pennsylvania in 2021 than in 2020, according to data from the state's prescription drug monitoring program.
There were 5,162 deaths in 2020, a significant increase from previous years, but in 2021 preliminary data shows they went up again to 5,224.
Jared Shineberry with the state department of health says the pandemic is largely to blame.
“With the pandemic came a lot of different complexities and new hardships on some people’s lives. We think that those really are what contributed to the increase that we’re seeing in overdoses today.”
He says those numbers are on pace to go up again in 2022.
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