Opiate overdoses spike in black Philadelphians, but drop in white residents since COVID-19
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21 January 2021Opiate overdoses spike in black Philadelphians, but drop in white residents since COVID-19
While it has been reported that opioid overdose deaths have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, a new study looking at data in Philadelphia showed that this hardship has been overwhelmingly suffered by Black individuals. Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania analyzed the period of time after the city’s stay-at-home order was announced in 2020 and showed that, compared to the year before, the number of fatal overdoses suffered by Black individuals spiked by more than 50 percent. At the same time, the rate for white individuals actually fell by 31 percent over the same period. This research was published in JAMA Network Open.
