MAINE, Maine — Maine ranks among the top 10 states in the nation for fentanyl deaths with nearly 12 deaths per 100,000 residents, according to a new study.
HealthTestingCenters.com released the study placing Maine as the ninth highest state for fentanyl-related deaths in the country on Oct. 1.
Fentanyl deaths in the state increased by nearly 2,000% from 2013 to 2017 resulting in 11.87 deaths per 100,000 residents, according to the study.
No state in the U.S. is immune to the opioid crisis and researchers set out to examine not only which states have the highest rates of fentanyl-related drug overdose deaths but also where it is being prescribed the most.
West Virginia has the highest fentanyl deaths in America while Nebraska has the lowest rate.
The study analyzed data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) through 2018 and found Fentanyl contributed to nearly half of all drug overdose deaths in 2018.
Nationally, some good news, there is a 3% decline in all drug overdose deaths in 2018.
