Painkiller overdoses rising in the Bronx

Opioid overdoses are on the rise in the Bronx, according to the city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.  The painkillers were involved in 28 percent of overdose deaths in New York in 2013,

News 12 Staff

Apr 30, 2015, 2:50 AM

Updated 3,445 days ago

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Opioid overdoses are on the rise in the Bronx, according to the city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. 
The painkillers were involved in 28 percent of overdose deaths in New York in 2013, officials say.
Officials and community members are asking doctors to only prescribe the drugs as a last resort.
"One way to think about prescription painkillers is like heroin in a pill," says Dr. Hilary Kunins, of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. "They are risky medications and can cause the same problems as heroin, including death and overdose."