Overdose deaths up sharply in Nevada

Sam Szoyka, youth program coordinator with Partnership Carson City, builds a display to raise awareness about opioid addiction in Carson City on Wednesday. The 408 prescription bottles, each covered with a statistic about opioid addiction, represent the number of Nevadans who died from an opioid overdose in 2016. The piece can be viewed at Carson and Musser Streets in front of the Capitol.

Nevada Appeal Capitol Bureau

Monday, October 11, 2021

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State health officials say despite the availability of treatment programs, accidental drug overdose deaths continue to increase in Nevada.

The number of cases is up 55 percent from 2019 to 2020 — from 510 to a total of 788.

A spokesman said the number of overdoses among those younger than 25 nearly tripled from 38 in 2019 to 106 in 2020.

Half of those people had a mental health problem but only one in nine had ever received drug abuse treatment.
Officials say if an overdose occurs, call 9-1-1 immediately. Callers are protected by the 2015 Good Samaritan Overdose law that prevents them from being prosecuted for narcotics related offenses when seeking help for a drug emergency.

In addition, they say the overdose antidote Naloxone is available for free statewide and can be obtained without a prescription.

Overdose deaths up sharply in Nevada

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