--- description: Heroin-related deaths have quadrupled in the U.S., with the highest risk among adults ages 25 to 44, according to new data title: Heroin-Related Deaths Have Quadrupled in America image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbe46bb58ed00103c/698781f4f887dc2d01e8a6b1/10156652-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Health](/section/health/) ## Health Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Addiction](/tag/addiction/) ## Addiction Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Heroin-Related Deaths Have Quadrupled in America by [Alexandra Sifferlin](/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 4, 2015 5:01 AM CUT  MAN INJECTING NARCOTICS MAN INJECTING NARCOTICSGetty Images by [Alexandra Sifferlin](/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 4, 2015 5:01 AM CUT **Correction appended, March 5** Heroin-related deaths nearly tripled in the U.S. within just three years and quadrupled in 13, according to new federal data. The new report from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) shows that from 2000 to 2013, drug-poisoning deaths involving heroin increased fourfold, from 0.7 deaths per 100,000 people to 2.7 deaths per 100,000 people. The rate was about four times higher among men than among women in 2013. Heroin-related drug-poisoning deaths have increased in all age groups, races and ethnic groups, the data show. Every region in the U.S. also experienced an increase, and the Midwest experienced the biggest jump. One reason for the spike is America’s growing painkiller problem. The NCHS released another [report](http://time.com/3721251/cdc-pain-killers/ "undefined") last month showing that significantly more people over age 20 are using opioids. The number of people who used a painkiller stronger than morphine increased from 17% to 37% from the early 2000s to about a decade later.  CDC/NCHS, National Vital Statistics System, Mortality. People who are hooked on painkillers may make the switch to heroin since it’s cheaper and doesn’t need a prescription, according to Dr. Andrew Kolodny, the chief medical officer of the Phoenix House, a national nonprofit drug and alcohol-rehabilitation organization. Both drugs come from the opium poppy and therefore offer a similar high. “We are seeing heroin deaths sky rocketing because we have an epidemic of people addicted to opioids. There are new markets like suburbs where heroin didn’t used to exist,” says Kolodny. (He was not involved in the research.) ### 'Two Lives Lost to Heroin': A Harrowing, Early Portrait of Addicts  Caption from LIFE. Her arms around Johnny and his brother, Bro -- also an addict -- Karen lies hopelessly on a hotel bed. Bill Eppridge—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  LIFE magazine, Feb. 26, 1965. LIFE Magazine  LIFE magazine, Feb. 26, 1965. LIFE Magazine  LIFE magazine, Feb. 26, 1965. LIFE Magazine  LIFE magazine, Feb. 26, 1965. LIFE Magazine  LIFE magazine, Feb. 26, 1965. LIFE Magazine  LIFE magazine, Feb. 26, 1965. LIFE Magazine  LIFE magazine, Feb. 26, 1965. LIFE Magazine  LIFE magazine, Feb. 26, 1965. LIFE Magazine **MORE** [Why You Don’t Know About the Heroin Vaccine](http://time.com/3654784/why-youve-never-heard-of-the-vaccine-for-heroin-addiction/ "undefined") Prior data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that painkillers are a growing problem. In 2014, the CDC [reported](http://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/opioid-prescribing/ "undefined") that physicians wrote 259 million painkiller prescription in a single year — the equivalent of a bottle of pills per American — and almost 50 Americans die every day from a prescription-painkiller overdose. The agency recommends that states run prescription-drug prescribing databases to track overprescribing and consider policies that reduce risky prescribing practices. As [states](http://time.com/3723805/naloxone-heroin-overdose-drug-ohio/ "undefined") and the [White House](http://www.whitehouse.gov/ondcp/news-releases/2016-budget-opioid-resources "undefined") struggle to tackle opioid addiction, some experts are skeptical about whether such efforts are enough to solve the problem. “We are dealing with the worst drug epidemic in our history,” says Kolodny. “There’s no evidence it’s plateauing.” _Read next:_ [_Ohio Steps Up Fight Against Heroin Deaths_](http://time.com/3723805/naloxone-heroin-overdose-drug-ohio/?xid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/?sl%5Fautoplay=true&xid=spl-fullbrief-article "undefined") **Correction:** An earlier version of this article misstated the timeline of the U.S. heroin-related death rate. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3730128/heroin-deaths-painkillers/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3730128/heroin-deaths-painkillers/"},"headline":"Heroin-Related Deaths Have Quadrupled in America","datePublished":"2015-03-04T05:01:30.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:05:16.939Z","description":"New federal data reports bad news for America's heroin problem","url":"https://time.com/3730128/heroin-deaths-painkillers/","keywords":["Addiction","abuse","CDC","Heroin","opioids","drug addiction","pain killers"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbe46bb58ed00103c/698781f4f887dc2d01e8a6b1/10156652-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alexandra Sifferlin","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbe46bb58ed00103c/698781f4f887dc2d01e8a6b1/10156652-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"10156652","caption":"10156652","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/addiction/","name":"Addiction"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3730128/heroin-deaths-painkillers/","name":"Heroin-Related Deaths Have Quadrupled in America"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"FDA Approves Heroin Overdose Rescue Pen","description":"The FDA has approved an anti-heroin-overdose tool for use by the general public. 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