Fentanyl became the top killer in American adults aged 18 to 45 between 2020 and 2021, with drug overdoses exceeding the number of COVID-19 deaths in the age group, according to an analysis of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Nearly 79,000 people between the ages of 18 and 45 died of fentanyl overdoses between April 2020 and April 2021, according to Families Against Fentanyl, which analyzed the government data.
While 37,208 people in that age group died of fentanyl overdoses in 2020, the number rose to 41,587 in 2021.
The founder of the opioid awareness organization, James Rauh, who lost his son to an overdose, called it “a national emergency,” according to Fox News.
“America’s young adults — thousands of unsuspecting Americans — are being poisoned,” he said. “It is widely known that illicit fentanyl is driving the massive spike in drug-related deaths. A new approach to this catastrophe is needed.”