It’s something that local, state and federal officials all agree on: President Trump’s decision to declare the opioid epidemic a public health emergency.
And they also agree that this is just the first step in addressing a major problem that has seeped into many communities.
“My initial reaction to the declaration of the public health crisis is that it is positive that information coming from the top acknowledges that substance use disorder is a disease that needs attention and must be taken seriously,” said Alcohol and Drug Abuse Services Inc. Executive Director Angie Eckstrom. “My concern is that the declaration may not lead to any meaningful financial help to allow providers to add staffing and programming to serve more individuals in need.”
She said she doesn’t believe the opioid crisis is getting any better based on a rise in the amount of overdoses compared to last year across Pennsylvania. But she said she has seen increased awareness in the dangers of using opioids, prescribed or non-prescribed.
Comparing data from last fiscal year to this fiscal year, ADAS has experienced an uptick in the number of individuals seeking treatment in outpatient and inpatient services.
“We have increased our capacity to meet the need of our residents in the counties of Cameron, Elk and McKean,” Eckstrom said. “When looking at the data specific to drug of choice use, it appears that there remains an equal amount of individuals seeking treatment for alcohol use and opioid use from previous the year to this year.”
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reports that 13 Pennsylvanians die every day from an opioid or heroin overdose. In 2016, 4,812 Pennsylvanians died from an overdose of opioid drugs.
“Federal, state and local efforts such as more funding for substance use programs, pharmacy registry, drug take-back boxes, physician education, restrictions on prescribing opiates, Narcan disbursement and intervention initiatives are all necessary steps to fight this epidemic,” Eckstrom said. “All of the above steps combined with law enforcement efforts, from federal to local, to help take these deadly substances off the street hopefully will make an impact so that we can save lives and treat people who are suffering from this deadly disease.”
More needs to be done than issuing declarations, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., said. He said he introduced legislation, the Combating the Opioid Epidemic Act, that would invest $45 billion over a decade to fund opioid treatment and prevention, as well as research on pain and addiction.
“Good treatment, over a sustained period of time, gives those with an opioid dependence and their families the best shot at overcoming this challenge,” Casey said. “The Administration and congressional Republicans must also stop pursuing health care schemes to decimate Medicaid, which would deny Americans’ coverage for substance use disorders.”
State Department of Human Services Acting Secretary Teresa Miller said the Gov. Tom Wolf Administration is embarking on a plan to expand coverage for substance use disorder treatment
“Pennsylvania is working tirelessly at the state and local level to address this epidemic through evidence-based treatment, prevention, and awareness efforts,” said state Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs Acting Secretary Jennifer Smith. “We look forward to working with the federal government to build on these efforts to help Pennsylvanians impacted by the heroin and opioid epidemic.”
On the federal level, Congress has taken recent bipartisan action with the Comprehensive Addiction Recovery Act and the 21st Century Cures Act, U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., said.
“But we must take further steps including implementing my already-passed legislation, the Stopping Medication Abuse and Protecting Seniors Act, which would reduce overutilization and diversion of prescription opioids,” Toomey said. “We also need to keep dangerous substances, like deadly fentanyl, out of the United States by cutting off production at the source.”
