Orman Hall (right) presents to a gathering of multiple task forces aimed at fighting the opioid epidemic.
A unique meeting of three groups focused on combatting the opioid epidemic in Ohio met together Nov. 14 in Athens to hear a presentation on the epidemic’s state and local impact.
Orman Hall, an executive in residence for Ohio University’s College of Health Sciences and Professions, is a former director of Gov. John Kasich’s opioid action team where he focused on defining the scope of opioid addiction in the state and developing strategies for community education, prevention and treatment.
Hall spoke to a crowd of approximately 40 people from the Ohio Opiate Task Force, Athens County Opiate Task Force and Athens HOPE (Halting Opioid Abuse through Prevention and Education). He pointed out that in the initial stage of opioid use, euphoria is high and withdrawal symptoms are minimal. After continued use, tolerance increases, euphoria diminishes and withdrawal symptoms become more severe. This cycle compels later stage addicts to use larger amounts of opioids to avoid withdrawal.
The discussion revealed that in 2017, Ohio had the second highest overdose death rate per 100,000 people in the nation, behind only West Virginia. However, Hall said that until recently, Southeast Ohio was the epicenter of opioid overdose deaths in the state and added, “Southeast Ohio has been less affected by Fentanyl-related deaths than most other counties and now has a lower rate of overdose death than the remainder of Ohio.”
He displayed population-weighted heat maps for the state and correlated major highway lines with a high trend of overdose deaths. Hall also described data that tracked the opioid prescription rates and number of overdose deaths at a nearly statistically identical rate up until 2011 — the year House Bill 93 passed in Ohio, limiting pill mills and cutting back on prescribing. Since then, more laws have been enacted and that data took a dramatic turn. While the prescribing rates plummeted by more than 30 percent from 2012-2017, the number of overdose deaths continued to rise. When asked why, Hall suggested illicit opioids such as heroin and fentanyl made their way into the vacuum left by prescription drug addiction.
Turning his attention to local statistics, Hall said Athens County’s data dramatically shifted from the rest of the state from 2010-2017. The overdose death per 100,000 population in Ohio in 2010 was 13.09 and rose steadily each year to 40.99 in 2017. In Athens County, a 9.21 in 2010 peaked at 18.41 in 2011 and has slowly decreased over the years to 9.21 in both 2016 and 2017. Trimble Twp., York Twp. And Dover Twp. (Glouster, Nelsonville and Chauncey) appear to be the most affected areas of the county.
Discussion with the audience centered around efforts with naloxone and rapid response teams, drug courts and other programs designed to continue the fight against the epidemic.