In Appalachia, deaths from ‘diseases of despair’ continue to outpace the nation The Appalachian region, encompassing a 206,000 square-mile span from southern New York to northern Mississippi, continues to suffer the highest rate of mortality in the nation from so-called ‘diseases of despair,” a new report finds. Diseases of despair are defined by the report as drug overdoses, suicide and liver disease/cirrhosis. While rates of these preventable […]