Heroin treatment higher in poor areas, but opioid cases more prevalent among affluent

An analysis of Irish drug treatment data confirms that opioid use, typically heroin and methadone, is far higher among people from very disadvantaged areas. File photo

There are four times as many drug treatment cases involving people from disadvantaged areas than people from affluent communities, new research shows.

An analysis of Irish drug treatment data confirms that opioid use, typically heroin and methadone, is far higher among people from very disadvantaged areas. But it also reveals that other opioids, namely codeine products, account for the largest number of treatment cases involving people from very affluent areas.