Franklin County officials say more people died of drug-related overdoses last year.
Mike Foley has details.
The Franklin County Coroner’s Office says there were 520 overdose fatalities last year, a more than 47% increase from 2016 numbers. Fentanyl-related overdoses accounted for 66.5% of last year’s deaths compared to 40.7% in 2016. Cocaine-related overdose deaths increased from 34% to 36% in 2017. Methamphetamine-related overdose fatalities rose from 2% in 2016 to 4.6% in 2017. Only heroin-related overdose deaths declined in 2017, representing 16% compared to almost 41 in 2016. Slightly more than half of the deaths occurred in people under the age of 39, and most were white males. County officials say the numbers are preliminary as not all cases have been finalized.
