photo: Be.Futureproof

Prescription drug abuse is the number one cause of injury death in Utah. In Utah, death by overdose is more prevalent then automobile fatalities. The data concerning death rates in Utah also highlights the fact that Utah is the state with the highest rate of prescription pain killer abuse in the country. Oxycodone and methadone are the most abused pain killers and responsible for the majority of these deaths in Utah. In May, Gov. Herbert signed a group of new bills into law that concern drug abuse and misuse. These bills aim to reduce the availability of serious prescription drugs, increase common knowledge surrounding the risk of taking such drugs, and better control the drugs ie: adding Soma (a muscle relaxer) to Utah’s controlled substances list. Before these bills, the law usually only dealt with street drugs, something that created a safe environment for at-home prescription drug abusers. Now, perhaps the law will slow their targeting of repetitive groups of street users .