New Mexico led the nation in drug overdose deaths in 2008, but the state Office of the Medical Investigator is “hiding” autopsy reports that might shed light on the deaths, the Española-based Rio Grande SUN is reporting.
From the newspaper’s article:
“According to the (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s) statistics for 2008, New Mexico had the highest rate of drug overdose deaths in the country. Studies between 2004 and 2008 by the state Health Department show Rio Arriba County leads the state in drug- and alcohol-related deaths.
“But to get the full story about any of these deaths, (CDC epidemiologist Len Paulozzi) said one needs to see the original autopsy report.
“‘That’s the source,’ he said. ‘That’s the detailed file any coroner or medical examiner keeps. That’s where all the detail is.’“Up until this year, Rio Arribans had access to those reports. But the (Office of the Medical Investigator) is now blocking public access to autopsies originating in the County, and the state attorney general’s office, so far, has failed to intercede.”
Read more here.