A recently released report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has unveiled a disturbing trend – the number of deaths caused by counterfeit prescription medications has doubled over the past few years, with a significant impact on individuals under the age of 35.
The report highlights a troubling scenario where people are losing their lives due to consuming what they believe to be legitimate prescription drugs like oxycodone or Xanax. However, these medications were obtained from sources other than verified pharmacies. These counterfeit medicines may appear authentic on the surface but are composed of unknown and potentially harmful ingredients.
Highlighting the deceptive characteristics of these counterfeit drugs, Tonja Myles, an addiction specialist and community engagement consultant at Huntsman Mental Health Foundation in Salt Lake City, underscored how individuals are manufacturing pills and gummies in a manner that convincingly mimics authenticity.
One of the report’s authors, Julie O’Donnell underscored the danger of these substances: “People don’t always know what’s in them. The risk of overdose is heightened among people who think they’re using legitimate pharmaceutical pills.”
The release of this report coincided with International Overdose Awareness Day and disclosed that between mid-2019 and the close of 2021, deaths resulting from overdose-related incidents related to these counterfeit drugs had doubled, increasing from 2% to 4.7%.
O’Donnell clarified that the figures might be conservative, deriving from the CDC’s unintentional drug overdose reporting system. The report’s findings indicated that illicit fentanyl was detected in 93% of all overdose-related deaths linked to fake pills.
The United States is grappling with a concerning rise in deaths due to drug overdose, reaching staggering levels. Preliminary data suggests that in 2021, nearly 107,000 individuals succumbed to overdose-related incidents. The CDC’s early estimates for 2022 are approximately 105,000 deaths.
The availability of these fake drugs appears to vary geographically. Fake oxycodone was most commonly encountered in the Western United States, while fake Xanax was prevalent in the South. Notably, overdose-related deaths from these counterfeit pills more than tripled in the West, escalating from 4.7% in 2019 to 14.7% by late 2021.
Myles emphasized the necessity of educating young people about the hazards of consuming unverified medications: “The increases highlight the need to impress upon young people the dangers of taking pills that may be counterfeit.” She stressed the importance of candid conversations with children about the potential risks of accepting medication from sources other than trusted pharmacies, including over-the-counter drugs like aspirin.
