According to data released by The Washington Post, there were 4.7 million oxycodone and hydrocodone pills distributed in Attala County between 2006 and 2012. That is the equivalent of each man, woman and child receiving 34 opioid pills in each of the seven years included in the data.
The Post obtained a Drug Enforcement Administration database of opioid prescriptions after going to court with a West Virginia newspaper to get the DEA information, reporting that drug manufacturers sold 76 billion prescription oxycodone and hydrocodone pills in that seven-year period. The data does not include sales of other opioids.
The Post also reported that 100,000 people died of opioid-related problems during that period and has provided a way for the public to see local opioid sales.
The data can be accessed by the public at: www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/investigations/dea-pain-pill-databa...
Persons can click on a state and a county to reveal the total number of oxycodone and hydrocodone pills delivered to that county between 2006 and 2012. The interface can also reveal which drug companies sold the medication and the pharmacies or medical offices that dispensed it.
Here are the Central Mississippi figures:
• In Attala County, 4,730,760 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills distributed, or 34 pills per person per year, based on the 2010 population of 19,488.
• In Leake County, there were 5,590,710 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills distributed, enough for 34 pills per person per year, based on the 2010 population of 23,738.
• In Winston County, 4,139,200 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills distributed, enough for 30 pills per person per year, based on the 2010 population of 19,200.
• In Webster County, there were 3,498,930 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills distributed, enough for 49 pills per person per year, based on the 2010 population of 10,258
• In Choctaw County, there were 1,656,700 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills distributed, enough for 27 pills per person per year, based on the 2010 population of 8,568.
• In Montgomery County, 2,524,396 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills distributed, enough for 32 pills per person per year, based on the 2010 population of 10,892.
• In Carroll County, 332,900 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills distributed, enough for 4 pills per person per year, based on the 2010 population of 10,602 supplied to Carroll County, Miss.
The Post noted that the DEA information does not specify how many pills dispensed in a county went to residents of that same county. The DEA information does not, however provide information on the doctors who wrote the prescriptions.
