DENVER (KDVR) — Colorado’s fentanyl issues may have something to do with drug demand.
The United States saw a 15% increase in drug overdose deaths, according to the most recent provisional figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2021, there were 107,622 overdose deaths, up from 93,655 in the previous year.
Colorado State Patrol has seized records amounts of drugs this year and in 2021. At least one statistic points to higher-than-average drug use in the Centennial State. Colorado is the most cocaine-using state in the union, according to survey data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration.
According to the survey, 2.24% of Colorado’s population aged 12 and older reported using cocaine in the past year. This puts Colorado first in the U.S., followed by New Hampshire, Vermont, New York and California.
Colorado’s adults are among the likeliest in the nation to say they do not perceive great risk from regular cocaine use. Of the state’s population aged 18 and older, 48.35% said they perceive great risk from monthly cocaine use. Only Oregon and Utah have lower rates.