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Hundreds Gather At Final Public Hearing On State's Opioid Abuse Crisis

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Two to three men and women in Massachusetts will die today from heroin or other opiate overdoses, according to current death rates.

"There were three times as many deaths associated with opioid overdoses last year as there were automobile accident deaths," said Gov. Charlie Baker, speaking at the fourth and final hearing yesterday of a task force he appointed to vet the state's drug abuse problem. "That's really all you need to know to understand that it's in fact a crisis."

The task force is expected to make its recommendations on how to deal with the statewide drug crisis by next month. Ahead of that deadline, hundreds of people turned out at the State House Thursday to relate their stories of addiction and recovery.

WBUR's Martha Bebinger joins Morning Edition with a report on what was said during Thursday's hearing.

To hear the full report, click on the audio player above.

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Martha Bebinger Reporter
Martha Bebinger covers health care and other general assignments for WBUR.

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