ODs continued to pummel Hamilton County in '16
CORRYVILLE - A seemingly stable overdose death count from 2015 to 2016 in Hamilton County is no reason to get comfortable, says Dr. Lakshmi Sammarco, county coroner.
"Don't let this fool you," she said following her release Monday of the overdose counts of 2016. "This is because of Narcan."
Sammarco and other county health and law enforcement officials Monday credited first responders with preventing what otherwise would be overdose deaths, because they're saving lives with the non-narcotic drug naloxone, which has a brand name of Narcan. The drug can restore breathing in those in opioid or heroin overdose.
Hamilton County's overdoses amounted to 403 in 2016, down slightly from 414 in 2015. But Sammarco noted that far more of these deaths were related to opiates or synthetic opiates than in the previous year. In 2016, 342 of the 403 overdoses were opiate-related; in 2015, 290 of that year's total were opiate-related. Overdose deaths made up more than half the accidental deaths in 2016.
The biggest new threat to those addicted to heroin or prescription painkillers, Sammarco said, is an unrelenting stream and change in synthetic opiates, and primarily the highly potent opioid fentanyl. These drugs are hitting street drugs more frequently.
Fentanyl, a highly potent synthetic opiate, started pummeling Hamilton County in 2014 and continues to be relentless. The Hamilton County Crime Laboratory has identified several types of fentanyl in the last several months. Some of these analogs' strengths are largely unknown because they are underground drugs, manufactured without precision and mostly overseas.
The coroner issued a report Monday showing that most overdose deaths in 2016 were from a heroin and fentanyl mixture. Next highest in the death toll was fentanyl combined with another drug, at 60, then heroin and another drug, which resulted in the deaths of 48 people. Also notable was a total of 23 overdose deaths that were caused by heroin and the large-animal opioid carfentanil and another 23 from just carfentanil.
That drug, a synthetic opiate that's largely manufactured overseas in China, has made another comeback recently. "There's been a large uptick in carfentanil over the last month," Sammarco said.
Emergency workers, from paramedics to hospital staff, are dealing with surges of overdosed patients.
Hamilton County Health Commissioner Tim Ingram said emergency departments in Hamilton County hospitals have treated 1,400 suspected overdoses from January through April already this year.
Cincinnati first responders were called to a carload of four people overdosed on West McMicken Avenue near Vine Street in Over-the-Rhine at about approximately 4 p.m. Saturday. Two died on the scene and the others were taken to University of Cincinnati Medical Center for treatment, police said.
"We have to get folks into treatment and keep them from getting sick," Ingram said, noting that those brought to hospitals should be immediately moved into treatment facilities.
Newtown Police Chief Tom Synan said the Hamilton County Heroin Coalition, which consists of treatment providers, law enforcement officials in local, state and federal agencies, public health and government officials and others, continues to work on solutions. Discussions include getting legislation that would allow police to require addicted people to get treatment. Such efforts also require new funding from all available sources, he said.
Kenneth Parker, criminal division chief of the southern district U.S. Attorney's office, agreed that a multi-pronged approach is the way to end the current scourge.
He also emphasized that children must be taught how to avoid addiction.
"Every kid out there is going to grow. And they're going to need to understand, 'How do I look at pain,' " Parker said. "No one starts by saying, 'I would like to be an addict.' "