Teenage heroin use on the rise in Washington school district

By Staff Writer

Communities in Washington state have encountered a rising trend of heroin use among adolescents.

According to NBC news affiliate KING 5 in Seattle, the opioid is easier for children to obtain than cigarettes or alcohol. Officials from the Snohomish County Division of Chemical Dependency report that 42 students between the ages of 15 and 17 are receiving treatment or are being admitted for an addiction to heroin, and that's just in two towns.

A law enforcement official told the news source that, in many cases, heroin has replaced marijuana as the gateway drug for young people.

Police say that the increase in heroin use among teenagers is due to the fact that the drug is cheap and accessible.

The school district that encompasses both towns held a meeting on Monday night to let concerned citizens discuss the recent trend. A community coalition has been formed which includes school faculty, community leaders and parents.

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health reports that approximately 25 percent of high school seniors said that heroin was "fairly easy" or "very easy" to obtain.