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New data is showing a dramatic jump in alcohol and drug-related deaths in Maryland.

According to the report from The Opioid Operational Command Center and the Maryland Department of Health, there were 1,326 fatalities related to drugs and alcohol between January and June. That’s a 9.1% increase from the same time last year. Researchers say opioids are responsible for nearly 90% of the deaths. 

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They’re blaming the increase on the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“People are being disconnected from their support systems, they aren’t going to their AA meetings, they are missing their counseling sessions,” Steve Schuh, Executive Director of the Opioid Operational Command Center, said. “We are very concerned that these kinds of factors that are contributing to substance abuse and therefore more fatalities are going to be with us as long as the pandemic is with us.”

State officials said they are working to make sure the COVID-19 pandemic won’t undo the work they accomplished over the past decade.

Read More: CBS Baltimore

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Study: Alcohol, Drug-Related Deaths Up Across Maryland Amid Coronavirus Pandemic  was originally published on wolbbaltimore.com