美国国家公共电台 NPR Fentanyl-Linked Deaths: The U.S. Opioid Epidemic's Third Wave Begins

 

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

We have new evidence showing just how severe the opioid epidemic¹ is here in the U.S. New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that overdoses of the synthetic² opioid fentanyl have increased exponentially. The report also shows that the opioid epidemic is hitting men and people of color the hardest. We're joined now by Martha Bebinger of our member station WBUR in Boston, who's been looking through this data.

Martha, good morning.

MARTHA BEBINGER, BYLINE³: Good morning, Rachel.

MARTIN: So the reports showing that deaths involving fentanyl are just going up and up - what does that mean exactly?

BEBINGER: 2013 was the first year that we started to see a surge in this drug that's now dominating the epidemic in many parts of the country, Rachel. It's the beginning of what public health experts call the third wave. So the first was the prescription⁴ pain pills like OxyContin that we've heard so much about. In the second wave, people switched to heroin⁵ because it was cheaper than the pills. And in some cases, it was easier to get.

So now with this research, starting in '13, we see drug dealers⁶ starting to push fentanyl, which is cheaper to produce than heroin. And today's study shows us how that changed the look of the epidemic.

MARTIN: So let's talk about that - who's being affected⁷ most. There's a disparity in the numbers of overdoses that we're seeing between men and women.

BEBINGER: Yes. So if you go back to 2011, 2012, heroin hit men a bit harder. But something started to happen in '13 when fentanyl came on the scene. Men started dying at an almost three times faster rate. There are some theories about why.

MARTIN: Yeah.

BEBINGER: Men are more likely to use alone; women more likely to use with a partner. When you use alone and fentanyl is present - since it kills people so quickly - it can stop breathing in less than a minute - it's very dangerous when you're alone.

MARTIN: So if you're with someone else, at least there's the chance that someone might call 911.

BEBINGER: Or use Narcan, or naloxone, the drug that reverses the opioid - the overdose themselves, yes.

MARTIN: Yeah.

BEBINGER: Now, also with women, Rachel, they seem more likely to ask for help, more likely to call 911, more likely to seek treatment. So that suggests that to combat this disease with men, we really need to be sure that they are encountering someone who's going to be - put them in touch with the medical community, whether it's an outreach worker, a clean needle exchange program, something like that.

MARTIN: Yeah.

What about race? This is an epidemic that's been framed by the media as a white, rural problem. This data says something different. This is affecting people of color more than we thought.

BEBINGER: Yeah. So whites are still dying as a total group more than anyone else. But the rate of increase for deaths was highest among blacks and then Latinos and then whites. So why might that be? Well, blacks and Latinos are incarcerated⁸ at higher rates than whites. When those former drug users come out of prison and they haven't used in a long time, that first shot - especially with fentanyl - can be deadly.

There's also the factor, Rachel, that blacks and Latinos may be less likely to trust first responders so less likely to call 911. Latinos have a very hard time finding bilingual treatment programs. And also, fentanyl is being mixed with cocaine⁹, which may disproportionately affect blacks.

MARTIN: This is all grim, Martha. Is there any sense from the data that this is getting under control, the epidemic, at all?

BEBINGER: Seizures¹⁰ of fentanyl are still increasing, particularly in the areas that have been hardest hit. But deaths are starting to drop in the state where I report, Massachusetts. That doesn't mean overdoses are dropping, but it may mean more access to treatment and that drug Narcan.

MARTIN: Yeah. Martha Bebinger of member station WBUR. She's in an NPR reporting partnership¹¹ with Kaiser Health News as well.

Martha, thanks we appreciate it.

BEBINGER: Thank you, Rachel.

1 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

2 synthetic   

adj.合成的，人工的；综合的；n.人工制品

参考例句：

• We felt the salesman's synthetic friendliness.我们感觉到那位销售员的虚情假意。
• It's a synthetic diamond.这是人造钻石。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 prescription   

n.处方，开药；指示，规定

参考例句：

• The physician made a prescription against sea- sickness for him.医生给他开了个治晕船的药方。
• The drug is available on prescription only.这种药只能凭处方购买。

5 heroin   

n.海洛因

参考例句：

• Customs have made their biggest ever seizure of heroin.海关查获了有史以来最大的一批海洛因。
• Heroin has been smuggled out by sea.海洛因已从海上偷运出境。

6 dealers   

n.商人( dealer的名词复数 )；贩毒者；毒品贩子；发牌者

参考例句：

• There was fast bidding between private collectors and dealers. 私人收藏家和交易商急速竞相喊价。
• The police were corrupt and were operating in collusion with the drug dealers. 警察腐败，与那伙毒品贩子内外勾结。

7 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

8 incarcerated   

钳闭的

参考例句：

• They were incarcerated for the duration of the war. 战争期间，他们被关在狱中。 来自辞典例句
• I don't want to worry them by being incarcerated. 我不想让他们知道我被拘禁的事情。 来自电影对白

9 cocaine   

n.可卡因，古柯碱（用作局部麻醉剂）

参考例句：

• That young man is a cocaine addict.那个年轻人吸食可卡因成瘾。
• Don't have cocaine abusively.不可滥服古柯碱。

10 seizures   

n.起获( seizure的名词复数 )；没收；充公；起获的赃物

参考例句：

• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year. 今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Other causes of unconsciousness predisposing to aspiration lung abscess are convulsive seizures. 造成吸入性肺脓肿昏迷的其他原因，有惊厥发作。 来自辞典例句

11 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。