Tag: overdose deaths

Patrick Kennedy Discusses Cousin’s Overdose Death With Dr. Phil

The mental health advocate spoke with Dr. Phil abut losing Kennedy Hill to an overdose this past summer.

Patrick Kennedy, former Rhode Island representative and son of the late Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA), is speaking out about the need for better access to mental health services, after his cousin, 22-year-old Saoirse Kennedy Hill, died from an overdose at the family’s compound near Cape Cod this summer.

Kennedy appeared on The Dr. Oz Show on Monday (Oct. 28), according to People. There, he called for a comprehensive plan to promote mental health nationally. Part of that, he said, means encouraging doctors to talk tot heir patients about mental health, conducting a “checkup from the neck up,” Kennedy said.

“When you go to your physician’s office and they take a family history of whether you’ve had stroke or cancer in the family, they ought to take a family history of whether you have alcoholism, or addiction, or mental illness in your family,” Kennedy said. “Because the chances are, you’re going to be at high risk yourself if any other family members also suffer from one of those illnesses.”

Kennedy has spoken out about his own struggled with mental illness and alcoholism. He praised Kennedy Hill for speaking openly about her depression, including in an essay that she wrote for her school newspaper when she was 18.

“We Are All Either Struggling Or Know Someone Who Is”

In the essay, Kennedy Hill wrote, “My depression took root in the beginning of my middle school years and will be with me for the rest of my life. Although I was mostly a happy child, I suffered bouts of deep sadness that felt like a heavy boulder on my chest.”

Kennedy Hill even revealed that she had attempted suicide after a sexual assault. She ended by calling on people to prioritize mental health care.

“We are all either struggling or know someone who is battling an illness; let’s come together to make our community more inclusive and comfortable,” she said.

This week, Kennedy praised his cousin’s letter, but said that it also showed how prevalent depression is among teens.

“She was speaking to her friends in high school. We’re seeing a giant leap in the number of suicide attempts and rates of depression and anxiety amongst kids and amongst college-age, young people,” he said.

Kennedy Hill died of a suspected opioid overdose, and Kennedy pointed out that the underlying causes of addiction need to be addressed, even as big pharmaceutical companies are being held responsible.

Addressing The Mental Health Crisis

He said, “So this is not a crisis that’s going to go away simply after Purdue Pharma stopped selling oxycodone. We have an underlying disease of addiction and we have an underlying mental health crisis in this country that we need to address and it’s not as simple as cutting off the supply of Pharma, it has to be more comprehensive than that.”

View the original article at thefix.com

1 November 2019
Tennessee Overdose Rates Hit Five-Year High

The increase in overdose deaths comes despite the fact that prescriptions for opioids have been drastically reduced in the state.

Fatal drug overdose rates in Tennessee reached a five-year high in 2018, despite efforts in the state to drastically cut down on opioid prescribing.

Data released by the Tennessee Department of Health showed that 1,818 people died of drug overdoses in the state last year, Fox17 Nashville reported. That gives the state an overall overdose rate of 27.4 per 100,000 deaths. Opioids accounted for 19.9 per 100,000.

The increase in overdose deaths comes despite the fact that prescriptions for opioids have been drastically reduced in the state, from 622,083 in 2014 to 440,473 last year.

Multiple Overdose Waves Have Hit The State In 2019

Still, officials in Tennessee are dealing with an ongoing crisis on the ground. In August, officials in one county reported 16 overdoses within 24 hours. Five of those overdoses were fatal. In May, Memphis police reported that they had responded to 12 overdoses in 24 hours, with seven deaths in seven days throughout Shelby County.

Police Col. Paul Wright said that synthetic opioids were to blame for the deaths.

“If you use drugs that are laced with fentanyl, if you use fentanyl, you will die,” he said.

He urged people not to use drugs alone, and reminded them that they could call for help without fearing repercussions if they were concerned about someone overdosing.

He said, “We’re not about picking up a user. If you are a user, don’t be scared to call for assistance.”

Wright also urged users and their loved ones to carry opioid overdose reversal drugs.

“If you have a family member, or you are a user, of opioids, you need to get trained on Narcan,” he said.

National Overdose Rate Is Declining

Overdose data from 2018 is just beginning to be released, and national data is not yet available. Yet, preliminary data has indicated that the national overdose rate fell about 5% last year, the first time in decades that there has been a decrease in fatal overdoses.

“It looks like there’s a light at the end of the tunnel,” said Dr. Andrew Kolodny, an opioid researcher, told The New York Times.

The progress has been uneven across the country, however. While some areas, like Tennessee, have reported increased overdose rates, others are seeing some progress in the fight against opioid addiction.

In New York City, for example, fatal overdoses dropped 2.6% from 2017 to 2018. That left officialls cautiously optimistic.

“The decrease in drug overdose deaths is promising, but far too many New Yorkers are still dying” New York Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot said, according to NBC News.

Pennsylvania had an impressive 18% decrease in fatal overdoses during 2018. Officials credit increased access to treatment and widespread availability of naloxone for reducing the overdose death rate and the overall overdose rate.

View the original article at thefix.com

26 October 2019
Fentanyl-Related Deaths Skyrocket In California

Overdose deaths related to fentanyl rose more than 1,000% between 2014 and 2018 in the state.

The recent overdose-related death of Los Angeles Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs has brought to light a troubling statistic for the state of California: while new opioid prescriptions and drug-related emergency room visits have dropped in the Golden State since 2014, overdose deaths related to the synthetic opioid fentanyl have risen sharply over the same time period.

The East Bay Times examined the increase in a feature that showed that overdose deaths related to fentanyl rose more than 1,000% between 2014 and 2018, according to data from the California Department of Public Health.

Phantom Fentanyl

The blame for the increase was laid in part on what the Times called “phantom fentanyl”—pills made from fentanyl and cut to resemble prescription drugs such as the prescription painkiller oxycodone, which were also in part responsible for the death of rapper Mac Miller in 2018—as well as changes to the legal system which have reduced the number of offenders entering treatment programs.

The health department data referenced by the Times found that in 2014, 15 people died from fentanyl overdoses in Los Angeles County. Four years later, the death toll had risen to 202—an increase of 1,247%. Statewide, fentanyl deaths also rose 614% during the four-year period, for a total of 1,649 fatalities.

The increase of counterfeit pharmaceuticals made with fentanyl was seen as the primary cause of the increase. Counterfeit pills can be made for $1 each, according to the Times, and sold for 20 times that amount on the black market. Both Skaggs and Mac Miller succumbed to overdoses caused by fentanyl and oxycodone in 2019 and 2018, respectively.

But the Times also cited the opinion of state law enforcement, which suggested that the passage of Proposition 47—which categorized non-violent offenses like drug or property crimes as misdemeanors, which are imposed without jail time—may have had an impact.

Removing those individuals from the two-pronged diversionary approach to drugs afforded by incarceration—the penalty of imprisonment and the opportunity to attend treatment programs in jail—has led to a “reduction in people attending treatment programs,” according to Jodi Miller, a spokesperson for the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

Narcan Availability And Fentanyl Strips Could Make A Difference

The increased availability of the opioid-overdose reversal drug Narcan could make a difference in fatality statistics, but Department of Public Health officials also suggested that greater access to fentanyl test strips—which can detect the presence of the opioid in urine and in drugs themselves—could also have an impact. However, access to test strips is currently limited to harm reduction-oriented programs, according to the Times.

Los Angeles County has also launched a public education program on prescription pain medication abuse in English and Spanish as a means of combating death rates in an area which saw some of the most significant increases—404 overdose deaths, including half in 2018 alone—in overdose fatality rates.

View the original article at thefix.com

10 October 2019
Pennsylvania Sees Drop In Overdose Deaths For First Time In Years

An analysis by the DEA found that in 2018, Pennsylvania saw an encouraging 18% drop in fatal overdoses.

A new DEA report finds that the state of Pennsylvania saw an overall 18% drop in overdose deaths in 2018, the first drop after years of increasing rates.

Southwestern counties in Pennsylvania saw the most improvement, seeing a 41% reduction in fatal overdoses. Philadelphia, which had the highest fatal overdose rate in the state in 2017, saw improvements as well, resulting in having the second highest rate in 2018.

Numbers By County

However, the recovery wasn’t seen in all parts of the state. Eastern and central Pennsylvania endured some of the worst rates yet in the same time frame. In Schuylkill County, the overdose death rate jumped from 27 per 100,000 residents to 49 per 100,000 residents in 2018. Twenty three other counties also saw increases in fatal overdose rates, and three more saw no change.

The places that saw a reduction in fatal overdoses also saw an overall drop rate in overdoses in general. Officials aren’t sure exactly what led to this decrease, but it’s likely that the increase in distribution of naloxone and greater access to treatment played a major role. Most recently, a safe injection site was ruled federally legal by a judge against the wishes of the U.S. Justice Department.

The DEA report also provided some insight with statistical data. Most people who died of overdose were found to have more than one drug in their system. Around 87% had more than two drugs, 46% had more than four drugs, and 16% had six or more drugs in their body.

Fentanyl Sweeps Through The State

Fentanyl, which has exacerbated the opioid crisis across the nation, has not spared Pennsylvania. About 70% of all overdose deaths in the state involved the stuff. Fentanyl-adjacent drugs and other synthetic opioids were involved in 23% of deaths.

The report included demographic data, showing that 79% of deaths were white, 13% were Black, and 3% were Hispanic. While this may initially seem like white residents are disproportionately affected, the DEA notes that this is reflective of the demographics of the state’s population.

However, overdoses are disproportionately affecting younger residents, especially the presence of fentanyl. Among the 15-24 and 25-34 age groups, 75% of overdose deaths involved fentanyl.

View the original article at thefix.com

8 October 2019
10 Dead In 26 Hours From Overdose In Ohio, Fentanyl Suspected

Ohio has experienced multiple mass overdose cases in past few months, with six dead in a single day in August and nine people dead in 48 hours in July.

At least 10 people died of drug overdoses in a period of 26 hours in Ohio, according to medical officials. This high number within a short time frame has the Franklin County Coroner’s Office suspecting the involvement of fentanyl, the synthetic opioid that is 50 times more potent than heroin and is often mixed with other drugs to make them more powerful.

“As of about 10 a.m. this morning we have had 10 people die of overdoses in about 26 hours. This is an unusually high number for our county in this period of time,” the coroner’s office said in a statement. “At this time we know fentanyl can be mixed into cocaine and methamphetamine. These can be deadly combinations for those who are using.”

According to ABC News, Ohio has been hit particularly hard by the national opioid epidemic. They have experienced multiple mass overdose cases in past few months, with six dead in a single day in August and nine people dead in 48 hours in July.

The statement about this latest rash of overdose deaths was posted on Facebook by Franklin County Coroner Dr. Anahi Ortiz. The coroner urged those with loved ones who use illicit drugs to carry naloxone, the medication that blocks opioid receptors in the brain and reverses an overdose. She also encouraged those who use risky drugs to take advantage of fentanyl testing strips.

Fentanyl-Related Overdose Deaths Rise

Batches of drugs tainted with fentanyl are considered to be largely responsible for the alarming increases in overdose deaths in recent years. Thankfully, many areas are seeing these numbers level off from 2017 to 2018, likely due to widespread efforts to make naloxone available to the public and educate people on how to administer the lifesaving drug.

Funding for these efforts has also increased substantially in the past couple of years.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration announced that it will be allocating a new wave of funding to fight the opioid crisis, with senior officials saying that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will be getting an extra $1.8 billion for that purpose.

First Drop In Overdose Deaths Announced

“Our country is seeing the first drop in overdose deaths in more than two decades, more Americans are getting treatment for addiction, and lives are being saved,” said HHS Secretary Alex Azar. “At the same time, we are still far from declaring victory. We will continue executing on the Department’s 5-Point strategy for combating the opioid crisis, and laying the foundation for a healthcare system where every American can access the mental healthcare they need.”

View the original article at thefix.com

2 October 2019
Five Overdose Deaths In New York Possibly Caused By Tainted Cocaine

Authorities have not yet announced what the cocaine was laced with, though some suspect fentanyl may be involved.

Five overdose deaths in one weekend spread across two neighboring areas of New York City have police suspecting that a tainted batch of drugs was involved. Three of the overdoses occurred in the Bronx with the other two happening just to the north in Yonkers.

New York police have identified a batch of tainted cocaine they believe could be the reason for these deaths, according to NBC News.

“Right now we suspect that there may be up to five deaths related to this batch of cocaine so we want the public to know to not ingest these illicit street drugs because the consequences may be fatal,” said Detective Sergeant Dean Politopoulos.

Waiting For Toxicology Reports

The Yonkers police are currently seeking to arrest those responsible for the tainted cocaine. They have not yet announced what the cocaine was laced with, though recent cases of multiple overdose deaths in short periods of time have often been the result of fentanyl contamination, the extremely potent synthetic opioid.

According to local news, it will be a few weeks before the toxicology reports are released.

Three Died in Pittsburgh In The Same Week

The deaths in New York occurred on the same weekend as a rash of overdoses in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, that killed three people and sent four more to the hospital. All of them appeared to have attended the same party or event as they were all wearing the same orange paper wristbands when they suffered the overdoses.

“The victims all took the narcotics at the same time and in the same location,” Pittsburgh police said in a statement. They believe the seven victims were at the same venue together and then traveled to an apartment where they took an illicit substance that also may have been tainted.

A man from the apartment called 911 for help at 2 a.m. Sunday morning, and police believe that if the drug had been distributed at the venue rather than taken at the apartment, there would have been other reports of overdoses in the area.

They are, however, concerned that there may still be a batch of contaminated drugs out in the community which might be distributed to future victims.

“We remind the public not to use drugs,” they warned. “Simply put: You do not know what’s in that drug.”

The Pittsburgh police have determined that fentanyl was the contaminant responsible for these overdoses. They have arrested a suspect, Peter Rene Sanchez Montalvo, and charged him with illegal distribution of a controlled substance. If found guilty, he faces 20 years to life in prison.

View the original article at thefix.com

27 September 2019
New York Overdose Deaths Decline Slightly After Rising For 7 Years

“The decrease in drug overdose deaths is promising but far too many New Yorkers are still dying,” said New York Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot.

The official report for 2018 drug overdose deaths in New York City has been released, showing a slight 2.6% decrease from 2017 after being on the rise for seven years. Last year, there were 1,444 overdose deaths within city limits, compared to just 541 in 2010.

Experts see this as a promising start after the city put forth millions of dollars in efforts to address this problem, particularly as the opioid epidemic has raged on. However, overdose deaths are still too high for anyone’s liking.

“The decrease in drug overdose deaths is promising,” said New York Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot, according to NBC. “But far too many New Yorkers are still dying.”

The U.S. has experienced a “third wave” of the opioid epidemic in recent years due to the increasing prevalence of the highly potent fentanyl. This particular drug is often added to other illicit substances such as heroin or cocaine to increase the euphoric effect, and has been attributed to the heightened death toll of the opioid crisis.

Around 80% of New York’s overdose death cases from 2018 involved an opioid, with around 50% involving cocaine.

A Little Relief

Thankfully, preliminary reports on overdose deaths throughout the country have suggested an overall downturn in the number of fatal cases after several years of severe and alarming spikes.

Much of the nation’s efforts to combat the opioid epidemic have revolved around increasing the public’s access to naloxone, the drug that blocks opioid receptors in the brain, halting the effects of an overdose.

Campaigns have been launched across the U.S. to install naloxone kits alongside general first aid kits in public places such as airports and hotels and to recruit people to act as “community responders,” using apps and widespread community involvement to save lives.

Naloxone Access

New York City alone has distributed around 230,000 naloxone kits in two years. The medication commonly comes in an easy-to-deploy nasal spray, which anyone can purchase from a local pharmacy and carry with them in case they or someone nearby suffers an overdose.

Local governments have also invested in facilitating access to addiction treatment programs and businesses have contributed by implementing overdose detection technology in customer bathrooms in places like coffee shops and fast food establishments.

Unfortunately, some possibly overlooked populations still saw a rise in the number of overdose deaths in New York, including among older adults ages 55 to 84.

View the original article at thefix.com

3 September 2019
Remembering Lives Lost On International Overdose Awareness Day

International Overdose Awareness Day is on Saturday, August 31st.

International Overdose Awareness Day is on August 31st, like every year since it began in Australia in 2001. This year, the National Safety Council (NSC) is encouraging people in the U.S. to recognize the awareness day and “remember loved ones and act toward preventing overdose,” according to Occupational Health & Safety.

Overdose death rates in the U.S. have been on the rise for decades, increasing from 6.1 per 100,000 people in 1999 to 21.7 in 2017, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The increases were particularly severe from 2012 to 2017, though early reports appear to show a slight decrease from 2017 to 2018, sparking hopes that national efforts to fight this epidemic are beginning to show results.

Spreading the Word

Still, tens of thousands of people in the U.S. alone are dying yearly, and the NSC is working to reduce the stigma of drug addiction and spread the word.

“Opioid misuse touches one in every four Americans, and these deaths are completely preventable,” said NSC President and CEO Lorraine M. Martin. “It is also a time to reduce stigma and prevent future deaths by supporting education and advocacy efforts.”

The NSC is recommending a number of actions that groups and individuals can take to commemorate International Overdose Awareness Day, including holding a candlelight vigil, hosting a fundraiser, wearing purple, and adding the name of someone who died of an opioid overdose to the Celebrating Lost Loved Ones map.

How To Participate

The International Overdose Awareness Day website has additional ideas and resources for ways to participate and has already registered a long list of events from all around the world, from Afghanistan to Waupaca, Wisconsin. You can also post or read tributes about lost loved ones on the website or download free social media graphics, t-shirt designs, and overdose fact sheets.

In 2014, the campaign partnered with the Penington Institute in Australia, which is dedicated to building knowledge and increasing awareness around substance use disorders and equipping frontline workers to act on the problem.

“Overdose does not discriminate, and the number of people affected by it are increasing around the world,” reads the 2018 International Awareness Day Partners Report. “Part of what makes overdose so deadly is the silence that surrounds it. At Penington Institute, we envisage a world where overdose is destigmatized and better understood; where policy makers make well-informed and evidence-based decisions that help those who are at risk of overdose.”

View the original article at thefix.com

30 August 2019
West Virginia, Ohio Top National Drug Overdose Death Rates

Midwest states were among those with the lowest overdose death rates in the country.

Statistics from the CDC show that drug overdose death rates in the United States rose nearly 10% between 2016 and 2017, with the highest death rates occurring in the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic and Southern regions of the country.

Though all points in the U.S. saw significant increases during this time period, three states experienced the highest overdose death rates—West Virginia, Ohio, and Kentucky—as well as the District of Columbia. Opioids were involved in more than half of the overdose fatalities.

As shown by the CDC data, drug overdose deaths in the United States rose 9.6% between 2016 and 2017; the death toll from drug overdoses reached 70,237. Opioids were involved in 67.8% of those deaths, and of that number, the CDC stated that synthetic opioids other than methadone were the primary cause of death.

Big Increases

Twenty-three states saw what the CDC described as “significant” increases in drug overdose deaths during this time period, including Alabama, California, Illinois, Maine, New York and Wisconsin. Though certain states had substantially high increases from 2016 to 2017—death rates in Maine rose 19.9% during this period—the number of deaths per year in these states were actually lower on a year-to-year basis than other states.

For example, Ohio’s death rate percentage between 2016 and 2017 was 18.4%, but the actual number of deaths in that state during those years, when adjusted for age and size of population, was significantly higher in the Buckeye State (4,329 per 100,000 in 2016 and 5,111 in 2017) than in Maine (353 per 100,000 in 2016 and 424 in 2017).

When age and number of residents was factored into the individual states’ rates, Ohio ranked second in highest death rates, with 46.3 deaths per 100,000 residents in 2017; it was preceded by West Virginia (57.8 per 100,000) and followed by the District of Columbia (44 per 100,000)—which actually saw a decrease, percentage wise, between 2016 and 2017—and Kentucky (37.2 per 100,000).

The Lowest Death Rates

The states with the lowest death rates in 2017 were North Dakota, Nebraska and South Dakota, each of which either dropped or experienced death rates below 6% between 2016 and 2017.

Response to the epidemic by state-run agencies has made improvements in death rates for 2018 and beyond.

The New York Times noted that areas in Ohio, including the city of Dayton, have utilized federal and state grants to help reduce opioid prescriptions, expand access to the opioid overdose reversal drug, naloxone, and increase addiction treatment to residents and prison inmates. As a result, emergency room visits dropped by more than 60% between January 2017 and June of 2018.

View the original article at thefix.com

24 August 2019
Connecticut EMTs Team Up With Poison Control To Track Overdoses

In May, the system helped detectives identify risk factors in a spate of 11 overdoses in two days.

In Connecticut, emergency medical personnel are teaming up with poison control to track every overdose in the state in hopes of combatting overdose deaths.

The idea started with Peter Canning, who has been a paramedic since 1995. When he first started working in emergency response, he witnessed the occasional overdose.

“I responded to opioid overdoses, but I didn’t think anymore of them than I did the shootings or car accidents. It was part of the job,” he told WSHU.

Where It Began

However, five years ago he started responding to more overdoses than any other kind of emergency. He started collecting information that he hoped would help him understand the trend.

“I started just writing down the overdoses I did, how old the people were, their gender, how they got started, and then the heroin bags,” he said. “I would write whether or not I saw heroin bags there. And I thought if I was keeping this information, which is really interesting, what if everybody was keeping this information?”

A few years later Canning discussed his project with the director of the state’s poison control center, who thought his department could be a partner for Canning.

“He said, ‘You know poison control, we have operators there 24/7 and this is right up our alley!’” Canning recalled.

A pilot program in Hartford showed that the program had great promise, so this year Connecticut’s Department of Public Health secured federal funding to take the program statewide.

Tracking Outcomes

Now, EMTs are required to report information about all suspected overdoses to poison control as part of the Statewide Opioid Reporting Directive (SWORD). The calls take about three minutes as the poison control specialist asks the EMTs 10 questions. After the overdose, the information can be used to track outcomes as someone goes to the hospital.

“So when they get transported to an emergency room we follow up for data regarding that to help trend it,” said Lori Salinger, a poison control specialist in the state.

In May, the system helped Canning and other detectives identify risk factors in a spate of 11 overdoses in two days. He was able to alert Mark Jenkins of the Greater Hartford Harm Reduction Coalition, who sent out teams with testing kits to help users detect heroin with fentanyl.

Jenkins said that initiatives like this can save lives.

“When we get information like this it’s a heads up to say watch out for this particular bag, make sure you don’t use alone,” Jenkins said. “If you do use together, don’t use at the same time.”

View the original article at thefix.com

14 August 2019