The Washington Post (11/22, Malhi) said, “Drug overdose deaths among pregnant and postpartum people soared significantly between 2018 and 2021, according to a report published Wednesday.” National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) researchers “collected and analyzed data on more than 17,000 deaths, including people who were pregnant or who had been pregnant within the past year. They found that the ratio of overdose deaths more than tripled in pregnant and postpartum women ages 35 to 44, the team reports in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.”
The Hill (11/22, Robertson) reported the study found “the rate of overdoses increased from 4.9 per 100,000 women between the ages 35-44 to 15.8 in 2021, the NIH said.” The researchers “said the increasing overdose rate could signal that there are still significant barriers to addiction treatment among vulnerable populations.”
Also reporting were HealthDay (11/22, Miller), STAT (11/22, Merelli, Subscription Publication), and Psychiatric News (11/22).
Related Links:
— “Overdose deaths in pregnant, postpartum women tripled in as many years: NIH,” Nick Robertson, The Hill, November 22, 2023