Opioid use, and deaths from overdoses, has jumped across North America during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Wall Street Journal reported. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in December said the U.S. will record 81,230 drug deaths in the 12 months through May, a record, up from 68,829 during the same period ending in May 2019. In Canada, opioid overdose deaths hit 1,628 in the second quarter, from 1,029 in the first, as the pandemic took hold. The construction industry, already facing a shortage of manual labor, has been hit particularly hard. Bricklayers, carpenters and laborers carry heavy loads and perform the same tasks day in and day out, leading to injuries like carpal tunnel syndrome, strained shoulders and bad backs. Seeking relief, workers can get hooked on strong prescription drugs such as fentanyl, oxycodone and morphine, and street drugs like heroin.
