U.S Cities With The Worst Drug Problems
If you don’t live in a town where you at least know someone who knows someone with a drug problem, you’re lucky, but you must live in a bubble. The drug crisis has been hitting the U.S harder and harder every year and it doesn’t show much sign of easing up. The drug epidemic is nothing new, but professionals are developing new ways to deal with it. With a sharp change from perceiving drug addition as snorting cocaine or shooting up heroin to the opioid painkiller issue, problems are much harder to detect and therefore require more effort to stop. Drug addicts are no longer exclusive to homeless people or those with an untreated mental condition. They’re now ordinary people who work, support their families, and own homes. HealthVersedhas identified the United State’s cities with the worst drug problems. Contrary to popular belief, they aren’t the cities you might refer to as the slums, but instead places that are only now being put on the map.
- Elizabeth, NJ
Even if you’re from the New Jersey area, there’s no way you would tag Elizabeth as the city with the worst drug problem in the country. You might even know people who went to school there and think to yourself, well they were perfectly normal, weren’t they? Back in 2012, Elizabeth police reported 250 different cases of heroin abuse, including a raid that took place in June. It took 70 police officers to arrest 24 individuals involved in gang violence, drugs, and weapons.
- Atlantic City, NJ
New Jersey gets a pretty bad rep on this list. Atlantic City is the Las Vegas of the east coast, but has been having some financial troubles in recent years. Similarly to Elizabeth, Atlantic City saw 650 cases of heroin abuse back in 2012. Police believe that there are drug rings being operated right in the middle of residential areas, attesting to how common the sale and use of drugs is in A.C.
- Kermit, WV
One of the highest mortality rates due to heroin in the country, Kermit police reported that in 2013, 28.9 out of every 100,000 people in the city would die of a heroin overdose. The area is known for its financial struggles and rural area, leaving drug use as a means of recreation. The city is also known for the 2006 scandal where one local pharmacy sold residents over 3.2 million units of hydrocodone in one year.
- Portland, ME
A city commonly visited by tourists, Portland has recently been dealing with an unprecedented amount of heroin overdoses. The Portland police chalked the increase in death rates up to New York City dealers pushing their business into the New England region. The heroin that’s sold in rural areas to people with low income is now known as “hillbilly heroin”.
- Baltimore, MD
Another popular city for tourists to visit, Baltimore saw a spike in their city’s heroin deaths starting in 2013. Reports show that as many as 10% of Baltimore’s citizens are addicted to heroin at any given time. They’re also known for being home to the most heroin-related violence in the country. Baltimore could be a thriving city if somehow how the drug population could be reduced. Bringing in violence, crime, and death, Baltimore is a city in need of help.
- Missoula, MT
Back in 2009 the small town in Minnesota was ranked number one for the most illegal drug use in the entire country. In the early 2000’s there was a survey released to all of the residents. About 13.8% of those who actually took the survey admitted to using illegal drugs within the last month. We can assume that the true number is greater.
It’s not always easy to identify someone with a drug problem. There are signs and symptoms you can look for listed on recovery facility websites like Nexus. It’s never too late to get someone the help they need.