The opioid crisis in Pa. cost more than $53 billion in 2016
Bryanna Shanahan holds her son Jorden. Bryanna died Dec. 16, 2015 from an overdose of drugs laced with fentanyl. (Submitted)
The financial cost and scope of the opioid crisis continue to grow, according to a recent report from the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.
The report found that opioid addiction cost Pennsylvania more than $53.77 billion in 2016.
That number dwarfs previous estimates and follows a new methodology for estimating cost developed by the Council of Economic Advisers. The CEA found that nationwide, the crisis cost more than $500 billion in 2015, a number six times higher than prior estimates.
The staggering figure has grown in lock-step with another grim statistic: the number of opioid-related deaths. That number has quadrupled in the past 16 years, with the most recent national estimate at 64,000 deaths in 2016. In Pennsylvania, 4,600 people died from drug overdoses last year, according to a state estimate.
The recent report shows the bulk of the costs are tied to services surrounding overdose deaths, rather than other factors such as addiction treatment or burdens to the criminal justice system. Those costs include services provided by first responders like ambulance services and police as well as coroners’ offices.
In Dauphin County, Commissioner George Hartwick said handling drug overdose cases has strained county resources. “It’s very significant. As we know there’s 120 people who die a day… from an opioid overdose,” Hartwick said, citing a recent national estimate.
It’s also burning through taxpayer dollars, said Hartwick who also serves as the state’s human service policy chairman. Dauphin is one of 17 Pennsylvania counties suing drug companies to help offset those costs.
The report shows the crisis has cost Pennsylvania 142 billion dollars from 2012 to 2016.
To see an overview of the report, click here.
More: Why Pa. counties are suing OxyContin maker
