With Cuyahoga County on pace to set a record for overdose deaths in 2021, experts warn of ‘fifth wave’ of opioid epidemic and fentanyl-laced drugs
Cleveland Scene: Daniel Flannery, director of the Begun Center for Violence Prevention Research and Education, weighed in on the recent surge of opioid deaths in Cuyahoga County. “This epidemic can be framed in waves, starting prior to 2010 that began to rise, then plateau,” he said. “The trend was largely focused around overdose deaths from prescription opioid pain relievers. Next came heroin. Wave three began in 2014, with an increase in illicitly manufactured fentanyl, often present in mixtures with heroin and cocaine.”