Story highlights Heroin use doubled among women and people ages 18 to 25

Deaths from heroin overdose are four times higher than in 2002

Atlanta (CNN) Heroin use is increasing rapidly across the United States among all age, race, income and ethnic groups, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Tuesday. And the increase comes with a devastating price: Deaths from heroin-related overdoses nearly quadrupled between 2002 and 2013.

Heroin use doubled among women and young adults ages 18 to 25, and more than doubled among non-Hispanic whites. Some of the highest increases were in groups with historically low rates of abuse: women, people with higher incomes and people who are privately insured.

"What is causing the increase? Our best information suggests two main reasons," CDC director Dr. Thomas Frieden told CNN. "First, more and more people are susceptible to heroin because they have been prescribed prescription opiates, like OxyContin. And the second reason is that heroin itself seems to be cheaper and more widely available."

The CDC's Vital Signs report points to data from the Drug Enforcement Administration's National Seizure System for proof. After years of stable seizures of about 500 kilograms per year at the U.S.-Mexican border, the amount of heroin seized jumped sharply in 2013, to more than 2,000 kilograms. At the same time heroin availability went up, there was a "decline in price and an increase in purity."

"Let's make the analogy with tobacco, in which nicotine is a highly addictive drug. When the cost of tobacco goes up, use goes down," Frieden said. "When heroin becomes more accessible and less expensive, more people will use it, especially people who are primed for addiction because of prescription opiates."

Read More