In the wake of his appearance at a Virginia Beach forum with school board member Carolyn Weems on heroin use, Attorney General Mark Herring has released a video, “Heroin: The Hardest Hit,” which focuses on heroin and prescription drug abuse in Virginia.
The film examines the epidemic from all angles with Virginians sharing their own stories of addiction and overdose, testimony from parents who lost their children to an overdose, and insights from law enforcement and public health professionals who are working to address the crisis.
Heroin overdose fatalities in Virginia have more than doubled from 100 deaths in 2011 to 239 deaths in 2014, while an additional 547 Virginians died from prescription drug overdose in 2014. Between 2011 and 2013, every region of the state experienced an increase in heroin overdose fatalities. More Virginians were killed in 2014 by heroin and prescription opioid drug overdose than car crashes.
In response to this growing public health and public safety problem, Herring has launched a five-point plan to combat heroin and prescription opiate abuse by creating and implementing partnerships and creative solutions for a complex problem. This film is one example of the preventive and educational measures the Office is pursuing to make all Virginians—from teenagers to adults—more aware of the growing crisis involving heroin and prescription and the risks associated with these dangerous drugs.
See the video below: