‘Hillbilly heroin’ capital

TASMANIA leads the nation in the consumption of prescription painkillers, new data from the latest National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program shows.

The latest survey measured the level of legal and illicit drugs in the sewerage system at five sites around the state.

The use of oxycodone, a painkilling opiod analgesic often called “hillbilly heroin” by those misusing it, was high- er in Tasmania at the end of last year than all other Australian capital cities and regions.

The report, undertaken by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, showed consumption of oxycodone had increased in Canberra and Hobart.

Policy and Research Officer with the Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs Council Jackie Hallam said the drug landscape continued to be dominated by legal products and care needed to be taken mak- ing conclusions on wastewater data alone.

Dr Hallam said the data did not reveal how much was being used, by who, or whether, in the case of pharmaceutical opioids, it is licit or illicit use.

“The wastewater report is consistent with historical oxycodone use patterns and there were massive weekly variations,” she said.

“The bigger issue that needs emphasising is that this is not just illicit use, in fact illicit use will be dwarfed by legal use.”

But pharmaceutical opioids are often one of many drugs that contribute to overdoses particularly in regional areas.

“Despite common perceptions of accidental deaths caused by illicit drugs, in 2014 prescription medications were responsible for more drug-related deaths (69 per cent) than illicit drugs (31 per cent),” Dr Hallam said.

The wastewater report also showed that in December, Tasmania had the highest estimated average capital city consumption of MDA, oxycodone, fentanyl — a synthetic opiate analgesic more potent than morphine — nicotine and the highest estimated average regional alcohol consumption.

Ice consumption in this state has been stable since 2013.

Premier Will Hodgman said Tasmania was not immune to the national spike in ice consumption and 30 new rehabilitation beds would be opened to help provide treatment.

Local alcohol and drug service Holyoake told a recent Senate inquiry into ice that Tasmanian patients were being sent to the mainland for treatment because there were not enough detoxification beds available here.

The wastewater measuring provided the national estimated weight of four illicit drugs sampled, revealing more than 8.3 tonnes of methylamphetamine, 3 tonnes of cocaine, 1.2 tonnes of MDMA and more than 700kg of heroin were consumed between August 2016 and August 2017.