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Overdose deaths continue to rise in King County. Here are two big reasons why

caption: Needles are shown in the doorway of a room at Sun Hill Motel on Wednesday, March 21, 2018, on Aurora Avenue North in Seattle.
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Needles are shown in the doorway of a room at Sun Hill Motel on Wednesday, March 21, 2018, on Aurora Avenue North in Seattle.
KUOW Photo/Megan Farmer

Kim Malcolm talks with University of Washington researcher Caleb Banta-Green about why drug overdose deaths are increasing in King County.

Banta-Green is a principal research scientist with the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute at the University of Washington.

According to a new report from Public Health Seattle & King County, 415 people died from alcohol and drug overdoses in 2018 -- an increase of nearly 10% over the previous year.

Overdoses involving meth increased by 19%, and overdoses involving fentanyl nearly doubled.

Listen to the interview by clicking the play button above.

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