Top 5 Drugs Abused in New Jersey in 2019
It’s no secret that there’s a drug problem in New Jersey in 2019. Like elsewhere in the United States, the drug epidemic is in full force.
Treatment admissions reached over 82,000 in 2017 and they continue to rise as heroin and cocaine grip the area.
These are the top five drugs abused in New Jersey in 2019:
#1: Cocaine
Cocaine was a problem in New Jersey as far back as 2001 when 40% of all people entering treatment were abusing cocaine.
In 2019, it’s clear that there’s still a problem, especially with professionals covertly using the drug. Earlier this year, a renowned neurosurgeon was pulled over and arrested for possession while on his way to the hospital.
Other startling facts about cocaine in New Jersey include:
- Newark cops seized $77 million in cocaine at Newark Port in March 2019
- 20 people were charged in a crack cocaine ring in Monmouth County in August 2019
- A Passaic County man got sentenced to 13 years for transporting “hundreds of kilos” of cocaine in September 2019
#2: Heroin
There are so many people addicted to heroin in New Jersey that if you put them all together, they would have a population of 128,000. That’s enough people to fill the fourth-largest city in New Jersey!
More facts about heroin in New Jersey include:
- A Middle Township mom found a bag of heroin in her child’s candy after Halloween 2019
- A Franklin Township cop overdosed in his patrol car on the job in July 2019
- State police broke up a heroin mill linked to 33 deaths in August 2019
#3: Fentanyl
Fentanyl is a huge concern in New Jersey because of its proximity to the New Jersey and New York shipping ports. This makes it easy for Chinese fentanyl to get shipped in cheaply.
Read on for more news about fentanyl in New Jersey:
- A Hudson County gang leader and an associate were charged with fentanyl distribution causing an overdose in September 2019
- Fentanyl helped New Jersey break records for most overdose deaths four years in a row between 2015 and 2019
- A recent ban on fentanyl in China could help reduce the fentanyl problem in coming years
#4: Prescription Opioids
Prescription opioids were the original source of New Jersey’s heroin problem, but today they’re giving way to synthetic opioids (such as fentanyl) and heroin.
In 2017, 455 people died from abusing prescription opioids in New Jersey compared to 1613 deaths from heroin and 1613 deaths from fentanyl.
That includes:
- 299 people who overdosed on oxycodone
- 120 people who overdosed on methadone
- 36 people who overdosed on morphine
#5: Alcohol
It’s not an illicit drug, but alcohol is still one of the most abused drugs in New Jersey. In fact, 16.7% of all adults in New Jersey said that they binge drank in 2017.
More shocking alcohol stats include:
- 2% of all New Jersey teens needed treatment for alcohol addiction between 2015 and 2016
- Binge drinking rates in New Jersey rose by 9% between 2002 and 2012
- 22% of all driving deaths in New Jersey were related to drinking between 2013 and 2017
Get Treatment for Substance Abuse in New Jersey
Drugs don’t have to be in your future when there’s help within reach. Call our treatment specialists today to learn about your substance abuse treatment options!
Sources
- New Jersey Department of Health: Statewide substance abuse overview 2017 <https://www.nj.gov/humanservices/dmhas/publications/statistical/Substance%20Abuse%20Overview/2017/statewide.pdf>
- New York Post: New Jersey neurosurgeon pulled over while rushing to work, had cocaine <https://nypost.com/2019/08/05/new-jersey-neurosurgeon-pulled-over-while-rushing-to-work-had-cocaine-cops/>
- NJ.com: Welcome to herointown <https://www.nj.com/news/page/welcome_to_herointown_new_jerseys_4th_largest_city.html>
- New Jersey Department of Justice: Leader of New Jersey gang and associate charged with distributing heroin and fentanyl in prison <https://www.justice.gov/usao-nj/pr/leader-new-jersey-gang-and-associate-charged-distributing-heroin-and-fentanyl-prison>
- NJ.com: Drug deaths in N.J. break record for 4th straight year. Why is this happening? <https://www.nj.com/data/2019/01/drug-deaths-in-nj-break-record-for-4th-straight-year-why-is-this-happening.html>