ABC World News Tonight anchor David Muir presents a special ABC 20/20 episode about the nationwide heroin epidemic in America. His report begins with this statistic: 129 people die every day in the US from a drug overdose. “That’s more deaths than from car accidents and guns,” says Muri. The vast majority of those overdose deaths are caused by pain pills or heroin. Four out of 5 new heroin users begin their drug dependencies with prescription pain pills.
Muir also reports that children as young as 11 years old are being taught how to administer (using a syringe) naloxone aka Narcan, “to bring someone back from an overdose.” It works within two minutes. As of July 12, 2015, law enforcement departments in 28 states carry naloxone to quickly respond to opioid overdoses. ABC 20/20 Breaking Point: Heroin in America will air March 11 at 10pm on ABC.