Fentanyl continues to kill in Sarasota-Manatee as Florida deaths rise
As deaths involving fentanyl continue to rise in Florida, the Sarasota-Manatee region saw more than 250 deaths with ties to the drug in 2021, according to state figures.
The medical examiners district that serves Sarasota, Manatee and DeSoto counties, District 12, reported 263 total deaths involving fentanyl in 2021, most of them including fentanyl in combination with other drugs.
Florida saw a 10% increase in those who died from accidental drug intoxication from 7,575 in 2020 to 8,257 in 2021, according to data from the Florida Medical Examiners Commission.
In the Sarasota district, 19 deaths were from fentanyl only and 244 deaths were with fentanyl in combination with other substances.
In 2020, 33 Florida children died from an accidental overdose with fentanyl, and in 2021, that number rose to 46, according to medical examiners' data.
A report from Ana Goñi-Lessan of the USA TODAY Network - Florida further explores overdoses, their impacts on families and how state leaders and advocates disagree how to fight them, as fentanyl deaths continue to surge among children and teenagers.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Fentanyl deaths in Sarasota add to Florida's rising overdose total
