Oklahoma No. 1 in overdoses

The Norman Transcript: Oklahoma leads the nation or is near the top in many categories.

Sadly, many of them are not the kind that merits a chamber of commerce press release.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported recently that Oklahoma leads the nation in the rate of abuse of painkillers.

The number of overdose deaths nationwide has tripled between 1999 and 2008. It now has surpassed vehicle accidents as the leading cause of death.

In 1999, 4,000 Americans died of overdoses of prescription painkillers such as OxyContin, Vicodin and methadone. In 2008, that number had more than tripled to nearly 15,000 people.

Prescription painkillers

Nearly 5 percent of Americans ages 12 and older say they’ve abused prescription painkillers. Fatal overdoses were more likely in men and middle-aged adults.

The problems are many: Patients shopping for doctors, lax use of a system that tracks prescriptions and mobile families.