Menu
New Mexico News Port
Journalism and Innovation from The University of New Mexico
  • Creative NM
  • Curious NM
  • Enjoy NM
  • Green NM
  • Justice NM
  • Healthy NM
  • NM Voices
  • Political NM
  • Raising NM
  • About Us
Close Menu
opioid_01_by-maya-holt
February 24 2017

Opioid Addiction and Arrest Rates in New Mexico Alarmingly High

Justice New Mexico

By Maya Holt & Kris Klarer / NM News Port

New Mexico is in the grip of a statewide opioid epidemic.

New Mexico drug overdose deaths involving opioids have nearly quadrupled since 1999, according to the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH).

In the last five years, over 2400 people died from drug overdoses attributed to prescription painkillers like opioids that transfer to heroin use.

According to drugpolicy.org, the number of overdose deaths involving opioid pain relievers or heroin in New Mexico has nearly doubled from 10 years ago.

There has been a recent trend of opioid painkiller users switching over to heroin, because of the similar narcotic effect and because of cheap, easy access. According to The National Institute of Drug Use, the number of people in the United States who said they used heroin in the past year nearly doubled. Unfortunately heroin is also similar to opioids in that it, too, is heavily addictive.

Heroin is one of the most commonly abused drugs in New Mexico, the National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC) reports. This is due to easy access and abundance. Albuquerque is considered a transshipment point for Mexican black tar and brown powdered heroin, primarily destined for the Midwest, the Pacific Northwest and the Southwest, according to the NDIC.

Pharmaceutical companies issue prescription opioids, but users are switching to heroin due to the price and accessibility. A prescription pill gondola is used for organizing and dispensing medication at pharmacies. Photo by Maya Holt / NM News Port

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) reported that in the last two years (Feb. 2015-Feb 2017) they arrested 133 people for heroin trafficking and 38 people for pharmaceutical trafficking in the state of New Mexico.  During that same time, they seized 136 kilograms of heroin and 11,000 dosage units of pharmaceuticals.

Sean Waite, Associate Special Agent in Charge at the DEA Albuquerque branch, said it is hard measuring what drug-related crimes are tied to specific drugs. The data surrounding trafficking keeps specifics, but everything else is simply classified as a drug-related crime.

“If someone steals a car, and they get pulled over, and they are also high on heroin or methamphetamine or any other substance, that makes it a drug related crime,” Waite said. “But police won’t say it is a meth crime, just a drug crime.”

The New Mexico Pharmacists Association (NMPA) has introduced new regulations and training requirements in order to try and solve this problem. The NMPA now requires all pharmacists undergo least 30 hours of continuing education over two year spans. The state government is also making sure doctors take the right steps when prescribing opioid pills.

“My classes have taught us about over-prescribing in our state,” said Elias Romero, a pharmacy school student at UNM. “The state wants to make sure that when we graduate, we know of all the procedures to prevent people coming to different clinics for the same prescription.”

New Mexico is working to fix the problem with illegal and legal opioid addictions. An announcement made by the NMDOH said that nearly two-thirds of New Mexico counties saw a decline in overdose deaths last year, even though it is still high. NMDOH also reported a 9 percent decrease in statewide overdose deaths.

Follow Maya and Kris on Twitter

“Immigrant Friendly City” Doesn’t Change Albuquerque Policing Policy APD Homicide Clearance Rate is “Exactly Where It Should Be”

Related Posts

savannahsickler-min

Creative New Mexico, Top story

UNM freshmen find ways to avoid going at it alone

By Bodie “Bo” Russell / NM News Port  They’ve joined The Pack, but now first-time UNM dorm residents are looking to each other — and to their advisors — in navigating strict housing guidelines amid the coronavirus pandemic this fall.  “Some of the new regulations include wearing a mask when not in your room or […]

spencecover

Healthy New Mexico, Top story

Local gyms strive to rebound after COVID lockdown

By Spencer Butler / NM News Port As New Mexico’s COVID-19 restrictions continue, issues persist for local gyms who are trying to balance public health guidelines while providing customers with a valuable workout space. As of August 28, The New Mexico Department Of Health has stated that Gyms are classified as “close contact businesses” meaning […]

PBS hosts Virtual Town Hall for state and tribal officials

New Mexico Voices

PBS hosts Virtual Town Hall for state and tribal officials

By Jamesha Begay / New Mexico News Port Officials from New Mexico’s Native communities asked for help and understanding from state officials on COVID-19 during a virtual town hall meeting April 19. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham was among the guests with U.S. Congresswomen Debra Haaland, Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez, and Lynn Trujillo, […]

News Port Named Best Independent Online Student News Site!

photo of award certificate

Congratulations to News Port! The judges for the Society of Professional Journalists’ Mark of Excellence Awards named this site its “Best Independent Online Student Publication” for 2019. Read about our exceptional regional and national honors! 

SUPPORT THE PORT!

Can you believe we just turned 5 years old?! If you’d like to help us get to age 10, please support The Port! You’ll help grow student reporters committed to high quality, ethical journalism for New Mexico.  Donate to the Fund for Journalism Innovation at the UNM Foundation!

Search the News Port Archives

@NMNewsPort on Twitter

Tweets by @@NMNewsPort

How are you experiencing COVID-19? We want to hear from you.

Help us report on the coronavirus outbreak by sharing a tip or personal story. We’ll never identify you without your permission.

FEATURED PARTNER

Check out our news partner New Mexico In Depth and their coverage of criminal justice, politics and other statewide issues.

FEATURED PARTNER

Searchlight New Mexico is a non-partisan, nonprofit news organization dedicated to investigative reporting and innovative data journalism.

FEATURED PARTNER

Visit the venerable Daily Lobo, our reporting collaborator on issues that affect the University of New Mexico.

Back To Top
New Mexico News Port
Follow, Share and Engage with NM News Port!
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Pinterest
  • Creative NM
  • Curious NM
  • Enjoy NM
  • Green NM
  • Justice NM
  • Healthy NM
  • NM Voices
  • Political NM
  • Raising NM
  • About Us
Comodo SSL
New Mexico News Port is an independent journalism lab based at the UNM Communication and Journalism Department. Our mission is to support the state's local news ecosystem through innovation, collaboration and publication -- with students. Contact: nmnewsport@gmail.com