As US fentanyl deaths skyrocket, misconceptions remain

Drug overdose cases, many from fentanyl use, are being attributed to a growing number of deaths in the U.S. Some rhetoric used to discuss the epidemic may be based on false information.

"Two years ago, I knew nothing about this," said Holly Groelle, the mother of 19-year-old Alfaro, who lived in Appleton, Wisconsin. "I felt bad because it was something I could not have warned her about, because I didn’t know."

The drug that killed her daughter was rare a decade ago, but fentanyl and other lab-produced synthetic opioids now are driving an overdose crisis deadlier than any the U.S. has ever seen. Last year, overdoses from all drugs claimed more than 100,000 lives for the first time, and the deaths this year have remained at nearly the same level — more than gun and auto deaths combined.