Opioid death rates tripled for Ontario teens, young adults since 2014, research shows

By Liam Casey THE CANADIAN PRESS TORONTO- Opioid-related deaths among teens and young adults in Ontario tripled from 2014 to 2021, while drug treatment rates significantly decreased, a new report shows. Opioid deaths among those aged 15 to 24 surged during the first year of the pandemic to 169 deaths, up from 115 the year before, according to research led by the Ontario Drug Policy Research Network at Unity Health Toronto. Just 37.1 per cent of teens and young adults who had an opioid use disorder and died from drugs had received any treatment in the last year of the analysis, compared to 48.6 of adults aged 25 to 44, the researchers found. They found that rates of opioid-related emergency department visits quadrupled in that time. The Office of the…

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