Number of US heroin users rose 300,000 over a decade

This Wednesday, June 10, 2015 photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows 16 packages of methamphetamine and heroin found in a car being driven by two Mexican nationals at the U.S.-Mexico border port of entry in Nogales, Ariz. AP

NEW YORK — Health officials say the number of U.S. heroin users has grown by about 300,000 over a decade. Most of the increase was among whites, across income levels.

Experts think the increase was driven by people switching from opioid painkillers to cheaper heroin.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the report Tuesday. It’s based on annual face-to-face surveys of about 67,000 Americans — the government’s main source of data on use of illegal drugs.

In recent surveys, nearly three in every 1,000 Americans said they used heroin in the previous year. That’s up from under two per 1,000 about a decade ago.

The researchers found that people who abused opioid painkillers were 40 times more likely to abuse heroin.