Westmoreland Co. Coroner's Office: Number Of Fatal Overdoses Decreased In 2018

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GREENSBURG (KDKA) -- The Westmoreland County coroner's office says the number of fatal overdoses in the county went down in 2018.

The office's 2018 annual report was released Friday.

The coroner responded to 2,875 deaths in 2018 -- the highest caseload for the office in history.

The number of accidental drug overdoses, however, was the lowest on record since 2014.

There were 120 overdose deaths in 2018. This comes after the county reached a record-breaking high of 190 overdose deaths in 2017.

The coroner's office says fentanyl-related overdoses decreased 40 percent from 2017, prescription opioid-related overdoses decreased 28 percent from 2017 and heroin-related overdoses decreased 4 percent from 2017.

In:
• Westmoreland County