Once associated with urban poverty, heroin is more popular — and deadly — than ever. More than 1,200 people in Massachusetts died from overdoses of heroin or prescription opioids in 2014.
A weeklong tour of picturesque Massachusetts towns revealed glimmers of hope: families starting to speak out without shame, once-oblivious political and medical leaders innovating to save lives, a small-town police chief putting addicts in treatment rather than handcuffs. But the body count is staggering and rising.