Opioid-Related Overdose Deaths Continue To Surge

FARMINGTON, Conn. (WTIC Radio) - Accidental drug overdose deaths increased last year in Connecticut.The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner says 1,200 people died from overdoses in 2018, compared to 1,017 in 2018-- an 18-percent increase. The vast majority of the deaths-- 94 percent-- involved opioids. It follows a slight decline between 2017 and 2018.Those who died ranged in age from 17 to 74; the average age was 43, according to Dr. James Gill.  There continues to be an increase in deaths with fentanyl and cocaine, said Gill.The numbers provide a stark contrast to 2012, when 357 people died of accidental overdoses in Connecticut.