Last updated : December 16, 2024
Heroin has always been viewed as a drug that caused problems somewhere else, but sadly, that misconception is being proven wrong on a large scale. In Ohio, the problem is so bad that police have recently started carrying a heroin antidote known as Narcan to combat the massive overdose epidemic.
As heroin spreads from inner cities to your average suburban neighborhoods, more people are exposed to its deadly effects. So far this year, it’s on track to cause more deaths than homicide in some areas, and it’s up over 400% from 2007 statistics.
Locally, we experienced the largest heroin bust in Northeast Ohio’s history, resulting in the indictment of 92 men and women on 203 charges, ranging from heroin trafficking, to illegal possession of firearms and money laundering.
“These defendants used firearms and violence to fund an operation that brought heroin and the death it causes from across the country into Greater Cleveland,” U.S. Attorney Steven Dettelbach said.
Bu this isn’t a new problem; just three years ago in 2010, Cleveland law enforcement officials conducted a similar, but smaller heroin bust.
Cleveland City Councilman Kevin Conwell praised recent the efforts that resulted in the record bust, but voiced concerns about the vacuum left across the region. Following the 2010 bust, he stated, violent crimes took off at increased levels as the criminal element sought to fill that void.
Unfortunately, this heroin epidemic isn’t limited to small isolated occurrences or geographical locations. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, heroin use throughout America is up 75 percent, and deaths and overdoses are also climbing.
Many heroin addicts start with prescription pain killers prescribed for injuries or post-surgery. When their prescription runs out, they often turn to heroin because it’s cheaper and easier to get. One Oxycontin pill can cost up to $80 and may only last a few hours, but $100 worth of heroin can last several days. To make matters worse, a $10 hit quickly leads to a $500-a-day habit that ravages family finances and increased crime.
“All my life, I heard ‘heroin addict’ and though that’s the lowest of the low. I stepped right into it without looking back,” said Cynthia Scudo, a mother of 8 and a recovering heroin addict. In fact, according to a recent study, almost half of hospitalized heroin users are in otherwise good health.
Heroin addiction doesn’t just affect the addict though. People who otherwise would be working and raising families are instead spending hundreds and thousands of dollars for drugs that produce nothing more than the desire for more drugs.
Dependence on heroin (and/or opiate pain relievers) has become common, even on maternity wards, where doctors say the problem has reached epidemic proportions. In 2012, nearly one in eight babies was born to a mother who used heroin or opiates during pregnancy. Nationwide, one baby is born every hour suffering from opiate dependency.
