Heroin Across America: ABC Stations Report on Heroin Epidemic Throughout the Country

ABC affiliates and ABC-owned stations report on the heroin crisis in their areas

ByABC News
March 10, 2016, 6:07 PM

— -- In addition to ABC News' "World News Tonight" anchor and "20/20" co-anchor David Muir's special report, "Breaking Point: Heroin in America," our ABC affiliates and ABC-owned stations across the country have also been reporting on the heroin epidemic. We’ve pulled together the best of their coverage to show how addiction has affected cities and towns in so many states. We hope this effort will help add to the national discussion.

More than 47,000 people died from drug overdoses in 2014, and that tragic number has consistently grown from 23,518 deaths in 2002, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The CDC also found there was an average of 15 deaths per 100,000 Americans related to drug overdose in 2014, up from roughly eight per 100,000 in 2002.

Click here to see the CDC's breaks down the number of deaths by state and county:

PHOTO: Drug Poisoning Morailty
Drug Poisoning Morailty

Below are just some of the reports our ABC affiliates and ABC-owned stations have done on heroin. Scroll through to find your home state:

ALASKA: Anchorage, KYUR - Even far flung Alaska isn’t immune to the heroin epidemic. Click here to watch the report.

ARIZONA: Phoenix, KNXV – Heroin epidemic hits Arizona hard. Click here to watch the report.

CALIFORNIA: Los Angeles, KABC – Support group has helped thousands of families in crisis. Click here to watch the report.

CONNECTICUT: New Haven, WTNH – Addicts must take a 100 mile trek to reach lifesaving medical rehab treatment. Click here to watch the report.

FLORIDA: Orlando, WFTV - Addicts across the state turned to heroin when Florida authorities cracked down on prescription pain pills. Click here to watch the report.

GEORGIA: Macon, WGXA – Heroin use crosses all demographics in rural Georgia. Click here to watch the report.

HAWAII: Honolulu, KITV - As heroin use increases, users in Hawaii are getting younger and younger. Click here to watch the report.

IDAHO: Idaho Falls, KIFI – As crime soars, police say heroin and other drugs are to blame. Click here to watch the report.

IOWA: Cedar Rapids, KCRG – As drug deaths continue to soar in Iowa, officials hope a new treatment program will help turn that around. Click here to watch the report.

MAINE: Portland, WMTW – Drug deaths worsen as dealers add the illicit painkiller Fentanyl to pills and heroin. Click here to watch the report.

MARYLAND: Baltimore, WMAR - Fighting addiction with methadone: One clinic serves 2,200 former heroin users every day. Click here to watch the report.

MARYLAND: Salisbury, WMDT - The quiet Delmarva area struggles with the question of punishment vs. treatment for addicts. Click here to watch the report.

MASSACHUSETTS: Boston, WCVB – A radical new tactic catches on as one police chief tries helping addicts instead of arresting them. Click here to watch the report.

MASSACHUSETTS: Western Mass., WGGB - A mother’s fight to save her daughter from heroin’s grip. Click here to watch the report.

MISSISSIPPI: Biloxi, WLOX – A Mississippi mother has to drive her son 20 hours away, all the way to Massachusetts, to the nearest rehab center she can find for him. Click here to watch the report.

MISSOURI: Springfield, KSPR – Opioid addiction treatment centers are overwhelmed with patients. Click here to watch the report.

MISSOURI: St. Louis, KDNL – Heroin antidote Naloxone saves three lives every day in St. Louis. Click here to watch the report.

NEVADA: Reno, KOLO: A local drug prevention program handles calls from distraught parents who have just made an increasingly common discovery. Click here to watch the report.

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Manchester, WMUR – New poll finds that opioid abuse is considered the state’s top problem. Click here to watch the report.

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Hanover, WVNY - High school now carries the heroin antidote Naloxone on campus. Click here to watch the report.

NEW YORK: Rochester, WHAM – Is saving the lives of overdose victims more important than arresting their fellow drug users? Click here for more.

NEW YORK: Albany, WTEN – Small towns to suburban malls, heroin and death are everywhere. Click here to watch the report.

NEW YORK: Syracuse, WSYR - Police say 80 to 90 percent of all burglary arrests have been heroin related. Click here to watch the report.

NEW YORK: Buffalo, WKBW – Naloxone saves lives of overdose victims….but may also allow those addicts to push the limits. Click here to watch the report.

NORTH CAROLINA: Charlotte, WSOC – An undercover police sting nets a young women selling drugs with her 5 year old son in tow. Click here to watch the report.

NORTH CAROLINA: Raleigh-Durham, WTVD – Tip leads to a huge heroin bust. Click here to watch the report.

OHIO: Columbus, WSYX – Helping heroin addicted moms maintain contact with their children, as they work their way through rehab. Click here to watch the report.

PENNSYLVANIA: Easton, WPVI – Caught on camera; After a man overdoses on a bus, police revive him with the antidote drug Nalaxone. Click here to watch the report.

TENNESSEE: Nashville, WKRN – A lifesaving heroin anti-overdose drug is now being offered without a prescription. Click here to watch the report.

TENNESSEE: Memphis, WATN - Families stunned by unexpected overdose of teen friends. Click here to watch the report.

VIRGINIA: Hampton Roads, WVEC – Hooked on heroin, Virginia’s growing killer. Click here to watch the report.

VIRGINIA: Richmond, WRIC - A baby boy born to a heroin addict spends 22 days detoxing off the drugs. Click here to watch the report.

WASHINGTON: Spokane, KXLY - A desperate dad tries to get his teenage daughter arrested, to stop her from using heroin and force her into rehab. Click here to watch the report.

WASHINGTON: Seattle, KOMO - A grandmother’s body is dumped after she overdoses on heroin. Click here to watch the report.

WASHINGTON D.C.: WJLA – Heroin Highway: Tracing heroin’s spread from city to suburb. Click here to watch the report.

WISCONSIN: Madison, WKOW – Wisconsin struggles to destroy thousands of pounds of prescription pain pills considered the source of the heroin epidemic. Click here to watch the report.

WISCONSIN: Wausau, WAOW – A Wisconsin woman talks about her sister’s losing battle with heroin. Click here to watch the report.