Delaware health officials say they expect another record year of overdose deaths in the state for 2020.
The state’s overdose death rate has accelerated for nearly a decade with a record 431 overdose deaths last year—the second highest per capita in the country. Health officials say they anticipate that number to eclipse 500 this year.
State Public Health Director Dr. Karyl Rattay blames the stresses of the pandemic and the synthetic opioid fentanyl.
“The significant increase in deaths, we know, is driven by fentanyl,” said Rattay. “Fentanyl in our drug supply. Fentanyl is lethal in small doses. It has no taste or smell, so often people are not aware it is in their drugs.”
An August analysis on drug use in Delaware from the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Philadelphia Field Division shows illicit opioids make up more than 40 percent of all drug seizures in the First State.
And the percentage of the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl tripled between 2017 and 2018 to make up more than 16 percent of all illicit opioids seized.
Behavioral health care providers up and down the state have noted an overall increase in substance abuse during the pandemic, resulting in more referrals for outpatient services.
“We really are seeing an increased number of substance use disorders post-surge of COVID-19,” Dr. Lisa Lowery Deal, Director of Pharmacy at Sun Behavioral Health in Georgetown said in June. “That is our busiest area of the hospital.”
The state suspects at least 316 overdose deaths statewide so far in 2020 but officials say that number is likely low, as there is a few weeks lag time in the data. This year's data includes a record 39 deaths for the month of May while the state was locked down.
Delaware announced Friday a plan to allow people to order the overdose reversal medication Naloxone by mail. Delawareans can now confidentially order naloxone using the state’s website helpisherede.com and have it delivered to their home.
Rattay says there's no need for insurance and no cost.
“We just want to get it into the hands of people who need it and save lives,” said Rattay. “So there is no out-of-pocket cost to receive naloxone through this program.”
Delaware spent millions of dollars in state and federal funds in recent years addressing its opioid crisis and is still working to develop a statewide system of care to treat overdose patients.
