Full Article by Eric Eyre | Mountain State Spotlight
As the pandemic forced support groups and treatment centers to scale back, West Virginia’s overdose death toll surged by over 40%—one of the sharpest spikes in the country. The CDC’s early data shows 1,147 lives lost in just 12 months, erasing years of hard-won progress.
“People are dying at mass rates… they are using alone more frequently, and when they overdose, there is no one there to help save them.”
— Chelsea Carter, Brighter Futures
While support systems crumbled, state lawmakers moved to restrict syringe exchange programs—despite CDC findings that they reduce overdose deaths and increase treatment engagement. The story also previews a $2.6 billion opioid lawsuit and a growing gap in public health leadership.
