Advocates push for more support for children who lost a parent to overdose

Hundreds of thousands of children have lost a parent to a drug overdose over the past decade, and advocates are pushing for states to use more opioid settlement dollars to support them (Source: “Hundreds of thousands of parents died from drugs. Their kids need more help, advocates say.” Stateline, Aug. 14).
 
More than 321,000 children in the U.S. lost a parent to a drug overdose in the decade between 2011 and 2021, according to a study by federal health researchers that was published in JAMA Psychiatry in May.
 
In recent years, opioid manufacturers, distributors and retailers have paid states billions of dollars to settle lawsuits accusing them of contributing to the overdose epidemic. Some experts and advocates want states to use some of that money to help these children cope with the loss of their parents. Others want more support for caregivers, and special mental health programs to help the kids work through their long-term trauma — and to break a pattern of addiction that often cycles through generations.
 
The rate of children who lost parents to drug overdoses more than doubled during the decade included in the study, surging from 27 kids per 100,000 in 2011 to 63 per 100,000 in 2021.