(La Porte County, IN) - So far this year, a vast majority of the drug related deaths in La Porte County is not from heroin.

La Porte County Coroner Lynn Swanson says fentanyl is now the drug used by a vast majority of the people who died the first five months of 2021.  She said fentanyl is easier to get now than in years past and the price of the sometimes lethal drug has also come down.  “Fentanyl across the state has been more accessible. So, I think people are trying it and they’re finding out it just really isn’t worth it,” Swanson said.

Swanson said methamphetamine is the second leading cause of death in drug overdose cases, so far, this year in La Porte County.

20 people have died from drug overdoses in La Porte County this year through the end of May compared to 11 last year at the same point, she said.