Student discusses possible solutions to the Massachusetts opioid crisis
By Dylan Quigley
Observer Contributor
The Massachusetts opioid crisis has been getting increasingly worse throughout the past ten years. According to Mass.gov, in 2010 there were 547 deaths from opioid overdoses, and in 2019 there were 2,023 deaths confirmed with more cases that still aren’t finalized. Since 2016, the death toll has flatlined at about 2,000 deaths from opioids annually.
Is there a way we citizens can start to decrease the death toll? As individuals, I think we are almost powerless, but a whole community movement to fight addiction might help things get moving.
In part, the leveling out of opioid overdose deaths is due to Attorney General Maura Healey. She has been involved in the Narcan Fund, which makes Narcan, the life saving overdose reversal drug, cheaper and easier to buy for first responders. Healey is also suing Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family for how they advertised opioid medications.
Yes, it’s good that first responders have plenty of Narcan, but what about the citizens of Massachusetts? We should have plenty on hand for our loved ones, because sometimes when first responders get to the overdose victim it’s already too late. It’s pretty easy to get Narcan as a citizen; just go down to a local pharmacy and they usually have some, or they will order some and it will only take a few days to come in. Most insurance plans even cover Narcan, often with a 10 to 20 dollar co-pay per dose.
I think everyone should have a few doses of Narcan at home, so buy some for yourself, buy some for neighbors, and maybe start community fundraisers to help the people who can’t afford it.
One still has to wonder if enough is being done, though. First, the amount of state funding for treatment clinics isn’t very high and the state funded clinics don’t have the most effective care. Not many of these state-funded clinics are long term or they don’t have enough beds. The private clinics and long-term treatment programs have much more success in getting people off opioids, but this can cost patients and their families tens of thousands of dollars.
Right now, there is a bill pending on Beacon Hill that would allow for supervised consumption sites to be opened up in Massachusetts. Dr. Alysse Wurcel of Tufts Medical Center, disappointed in the flat lining of opioid deaths in MA, said that supervised consumption sites are “probably one of the only things we can do to impact this trajectory.”
On the other hand, U.S Attorney Andrew Lellin said that he will use Federal Drug laws to prosecute anyone who opens one of these sites.
Stopping supervised consumption sites doesn’t seem like a valid way of trying to prevent deaths of American citizens, does it?
Having a loved one who is addicted to opioids can be frustrating. Sometimes it seems that everything you do to help has no effect. I think a big mistake we make is trying to understand what is going through their heads. If you were never an addict, you can’t know everything they go through mentally. But if you try your best to show them you love them and help them find the community that they are missing, this can go a long way. Constant support through treatment and everyday contact shows someone that you are determined to see how they are doing, and shows them that you care about them. Sometimes just that goes a long way to recovery.
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