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In 2020, 1581 people died from the use of illegal drugs (symbol image)
Photo: ermingut / Getty Images
The number of drug deaths rose significantly in Germany during the corona pandemic.
Last year, 1,581 people died from the consumption of illegal drugs, 13 percent more than in the previous year, according to the drug commissioner of the federal government, Daniela Ludwig (CSU).
In 2019, 1,398 drug deaths were registered.
As in previous years, the
main cause of death
was primarily the
use of opioids such as heroin and opiates
or their use in conjunction with other substances.
572 people died as a result.
The
second leading cause of death
was
long-term
harm
from drug use.
Situation for addicts due to the pandemic
"
dramatic
"
Poisoning related to substances other than opioids and opiates increased by 6.3 percent.
Cocaine and crack-related deaths also increased by a third.
According to the drug commissioner, the aid for severely dependent people has got into an exceptional situation due to the pandemic.
"
The situation is more dramatic than ever for addicts due to the pandemic,
"
said Ludwig.
Familiar structures, personal offers of help and contact persons have practically broken away from one day to the next.
Most drug deaths were registered again in the most populous federal states of North Rhine-Westphalia (401 deaths) and Bavaria (248 deaths) as well as in Berlin (216 deaths).
It was only in December that the European Drugs Report painted a bleak picture.
Accordingly, 8,317 people died in the EU in 2019.
Great Britain is in second place behind Sweden when converted to the number per million inhabitants.
(Read the full report here).
The situation is particularly dire in Scotland: in 2019, statistically, more people died of drugs there than in any country in the European Union (1264).
According to the report, the main circulations are cannabis, cocaine and heroin.
bam / AFP
