A grim tally soars: More than 50,000 overdose deaths in US

NEW YORK (AP) – Health officials say more than 50,000 Americans died from drug overdoses last year, the most ever.
The disastrous tally has been pushed to new heights by soaring abuse of heroin and prescription painkillers, a class of drugs known as opioids. The new numbers were part of the annual tally of deaths and death rates released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Overall, overdose deaths rose 11 percent last year, to 52,404. By comparison, the number of pe