2022 Overdose Awareness Day Reflects Pandemic's Impact

International Overdose Awareness Day, Aug. 31, is meant to raise awareness of drug overdose and reduce the stigma surrounding addiction, something the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (ODMHSAS) has long championed.  

Before 2020, unintentional drug overdose deaths in Oklahoma had decreased steadily since 2016. But during the pandemic, overdoses increased nationwide.

Behavioral health needs surpassed many other issues during this period and the trauma associated with the pandemic, for many people, is expected to go on for a long time. Addiction and drug overdoses are part of this trauma. 

In 2020, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said drug overdose deaths in the United States increased by nearly 30 percent over the previous year, reaching an all-time high of more than 93,000. It was the highest number of overdose deaths ever recorded in a 12-month period. In 2021, overdose deaths rose an additional 15 percent.

In Oklahoma, as was the case nationally, fentanyl and methamphetamine were implicated in most overdose deaths. Of the 733 overdose deaths that occurred from 2019 to 2020, 470 (64 percent) involved methamphetamine and 266 (36.3 percent), opioids. Nearly half (47.7 percent) of the 266 opioid deaths involved fentanyl. 

Even though fentanyl and methamphetamine overdose deaths continued to rise both nationally and in Oklahoma from 2020-21, I believe our agency’s outreach efforts are reversing that trend.

Oklahoma was one of only nine states that did not experience an increase in drug overdose deaths for the 12-month period ending in March 2022.

Reducing overall substance abuse is one of the agency’s top goals, and multiple divisions are working to achieve that goal.

We have been aggressively expanding substance abuse treatment and prevention programs in all areas. This involves all our residential and outpatient treatment services, as well as outreach to hospitals and medical clinics, law enforcement, public schools and colleges, other state agencies and through several specialized trainings.

With the lethal threat inherent in fentanyl, both fentanyl and methamphetamine are now considered our primary drugs of concern.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. Fentanyl can be found in illicit pills or powder drugs, but not in marijuana. People who use illicit pills or powder drugs should – and now can – test them first with fentanyl strips, which are available for free at any Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) across the state. 

In fiscal year 2022, ODMHSAS also distributed more than 20,000 naloxone kits statewide. Naloxone reverses the effects of opioid overdose and allows for transport to the nearest emergency room. Over the past several years, the agency has trained and provided law enforcement statewide with naloxone to administer to persons at risk of dying from an opioid overdose.

International Overdose Awareness Day really should be observed every day. Most of us have known someone who has died of a drug overdose and it’s important to remember them. Our goal is to reduce future overdose deaths, because every person saved is a victory to be celebrated.

Please spread the word that free naloxone kits can be ordered off the OKImReady website. These are essential in case of opioid overdose and can save a life before emergency responders arrive or if they are not readily available, such as in rural areas.

The OKImReady website provides a range of information on finding treatment providers, prevention programs, recovery support services and additional resources.