Heroin and methadone admissions at record level
The number of people admitted to hospital for overdosing on heroin or methadone hit a record high last year.
Scottish Government figures show 2,507 people required hospital treatment for overdosing on opioid drugs in 2016, equating to nearly 50 a week, the highest number since records began in 1999.
The number of people taken to hospital for overdosing on heroin, methadone, opium or similar opioid drugs rose by 133 from 2015. Scottish Conservative health spokesman Miles Briggs said: “The sheer scale of heroin and methadone use is ruining lives left, right and centre. We need a new strategy urgently to help these vulnerable people beat this lethal habit for good.”