Health security

Opioid crisis: Overdose rates jump 30% in one year

Opioid overdoses were up 30% in the last year across the United States, a study by a federal agency has found.

The US Midwest was worst hit with overdoses surging by 70%, according to the data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The Vital Signs study tracked emergency room visits due to an opioid overdose between 2016 June and September 2017.

The US opioid crisis claimed 63,600 lives in 2016, the National Center for Health Statistics has previously said.

The CDC said tracking hospital visits was more comprehensive than counting overdose related deaths.

"Long before we receive data from death certificates, emergency department data can point to alarming increases in opioid overdoses," said acting director Anne Schuchat.