NEW YORK, May 14 (UPI) -- From 2005-11, New York City's rate of overdose deaths from prescription opioid painkillers increased by 65 percent, city health officials say.
"Prescription opioids can be dangerous drugs," Dr. Thomas Farley, New York City's health commissioner, said in a statement. "They are chemically and biologically very similar to heroin and, like heroin, can lead to addiction and fatal overdose. Physicians and patients need to know the potential dangers of using these drugs."