Drug overdose deaths have been on the rise around the country for a while now, but it was still a shock for Jackson County to record ten overdose deaths in a five-day period in mid-July. By now, we've gotten to know the name of the suspected culprit in most of them: Fentanyl.
The ultra-strong painkiller is not only a drug of choice for some users, it gets mixed into a lot of other drugs, without the users knowing. Jackson County's Chief Medical Officer, Dr. John Mahan, is a psychiatrist by trade, and therefore well-versed in medications, with additional training in addiction psychiatry. He talks to JPR's Roman Battaglia about the overdose situation and the steps being taken to reduce the toll.