Delaware sees a decline in drug overdoses for a second year in a row. But state officials said Monday that doesn’t mean addiction treatment and prevention efforts can let up.
Delaware’s Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health (DSAMH) reported drug deaths between January through August of this year are down nearly 37 percent compared with the same period last year. But its director Joanna Champney said that after more than a decade in rising drug deaths, it's hard to attribute the recent drop to one factor.
And while suspected overdose fatalities are on the decline, overdose numbers overall haven't seen the same downward trend.
"We're grateful that the death rate has dropped," she said. "That's really important. But overdoses themselves are continuing, and in some cases have increased."
An area of concern she noted is a change in Delaware's drug market, which has followed the national trend of substances cut with animal tranquilizers, like xylazine or medetomidine.
Champney said the state notes the difference between overdoses and drug poisoning. The former is when someone takes a fatal amount of a drug. Drug poisoning is when other substances, show up and contaminate a drug supply or market.
"While it may not cause a death, some of the byproducts of what's in street drugs are causing a lot of health issues," she said. People who consume contaminated drugs, "may end up going to the hospital with really serious health issues."
She said Delaware has expanded access to substance use treatment and investment in harm reduction. And access to continue low-barrier services are key to addressing these concerns.
For example, the state’s investment in harm reduction means it can respond to data kept on deaths and non-fatal overdose clusters and deploy outreach teams and partners to areas with the greatest need.
Delaware is investing in recovery community centers, which offer support for people once a treatment program is complete, or act as a landing point for someone who has relapsed.
The state is set to give Horizon House in northern Delaware just under a million this fiscal year and about $845,000 to Impact Life Recovery Cafe in Wilmington to boost their residential and health services.
The state is also allocating more than $17 thousand dollars to The CAUSE for education and prevention efforts.
