A South Dakota resident has died of a heroin overdose. Attorney General Marty Jackley is rolling out a meth and heroin public awareness campaign this summer. Jackley says now is the time to focus on the issue, before more problems occur.
Attorney General Marty Jackley says there were 32 accidental drug overdoses in 2013, and 42 in 2014. He says that number is moving in the wrong direction. He says South Dakota is seeing the warning signs of a heroin epidemic, and needs to stay ahead.
“We’ve seen this overdose,” Jackley says. “We’ve seen an increase in treatment intakes as well as ER visits, and we’re also seeing an increase tick in the number of arrests. And so based upon all of the information coming in, we feel it is time to begin moving forward with both an anti-methamphetamine and heroin campaign here in South Dakota.”
Jackley says it’s especially important that middle and high school students realize the health and safety issues associated with meth and heroin.