THE TIMES-TRIBUNE | BY PETER CAMERON | 09.13.2016
The opioid epidemic continues to expand its tendrils across society, as deaths from drugged driving in Pennsylvania now exceed those from drunken driving, Lackawanna County President Judge Michael Barrasse told The Times-Tribune editorial board Monday.
In roughly the last decade, the number of deaths from drugged-driving incidents have more than doubled, while the total number of total impaired-driving deaths has stayed relatively flat.
“Alcohol has essentially been replaced by drugged driving,” the judge said.
More than 50 percent of people arrested for impaired driving in Lackawanna County have both alcohol and drugs in their bloodstream, he said.