A City on the Front Lines of an Epidemic: The Opioid Crisis in Las Vegas

Authors

Elia Del Carmen Solano-Patricio, University of Nevada, Las VegasFollow

Document Type

Research Paper

Publication Date

4-22-2020

Publisher

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Publisher Location

Las Vegas, Nevada

First page number:

1

Last page number:

15

Abstract

Advanced Undergraduate Winner

While addiction to opioids kills more Americans every year, the purpose of this report is to assess the extent of the problem in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, and to propound ways in which local policy can help. A geospatial analysis of opioid demand nationally, regionally, and locally explains how the epidemic is diffusing, where divides exist in terms of access to treatment, and the differential effects of opioids driving this crisis. By tracking opioid-related prescriptions, hospital admissions, and deaths, the results show that opioid demand in the Las Vegas metro has decreased but remains well above the national average.

Keywords

Opioids; Fentanyl; Heroin; Opioid epidemic; Crisis; Las Vegas, Nevada

Disciplines

Health Policy | Policy Design, Analysis, and Evaluation | Public Policy | Urban Studies

File Format

pdf

File Size

500 KB

Language

English

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Repository Citation

Solano-Patricio, E. D. (2020). A City on the Front Lines of an Epidemic: The Opioid Crisis in Las Vegas. 1-15.
Available at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/award/46