Fatal Overdoses From Heroin on the Rise in Maryland and Virginia

Deaths due to heroin increased in Maryland and Virginia between 2011 and 2012, according to NBC Washington. Health officials in those states also report an increase in the use of LSD and methadone, including among high school students.

The rise in heroin use is due in part to a drop in prices and an increase in supply, the article notes. According to Maryland State Police drug lab investigators, marijuana is the most common drug in their evidence files, followed by heroin.

Around the country, law enforcement officials are seeing an increase in the number of people addicted to heroin. Experts say heroin has become more popular as prescription painkillers become more difficult to obtain and abuse.

The 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, found the number of people ages 12 and older who said they used heroin in the past year increased from 373,000 in 2007, to 669,000 in 2012.