Blog note: This editorial refers to a Marin County grand jury report.
Marin
County health officials have been in the forefront of efforts to stem the
prescription of opioid pain relievers and deaths to which their abuse
frequently leads.
Their
initiatives made a difference, reducing the flow of prescriptions and saving
lives.
But in 2019, the cases of opioid-abuse
hospitalizations and overdose deaths rose to levels that caught the attention
of the 2019-20 Marin County Civil Grand Jury, which recently released a report
on its investigation and recommendations for further action that needs to be
taken.
While
lately most of the public’s focus has been on the coronavirus pandemic, Marin
residents serving on the grand jury offered a sobering reminder that there
continues to be other health threats.
While
they credit the county with leading the creation of “robust prevention and
treatment programs,” the jury is justifiably worried about the uptick in abuse
cases and deaths seen in 2019, after years of progress in reducing both.
“Despite
prevention efforts, the opioid problem in Marin has not gone away,” the jury
writes in its report, “Opioid Misuse: Strengthening Marin County’s Response.”
The jury reports that “opioid deaths of county residents in 2019 approached the
high levels not seen since the end of the last decade.”
One
of its recommendations should be easy — expanding the availability of naloxone,
a widely used emergency drug that can save lives from overdoses.
The
county, through its RxSafe Marin initiative, has already broadened the drug’s
availability, providing it to first responders such as police and firefighters,
as well as to family members of known abusers.
It
has also worked on increasing medication-assisted treatment available in Marin,
but the grand jury says the statistics show more needs to be done, noting the
county lacks sufficient long-term residential treatment care for those who need
aftercare and recovery.
The
grand jury is also recommending the expansion of its “navigator” program, where
someone counsels and assists those who wind up in the emergency room due to an
overdose away from their addictive and dangerous behaviors.
The
local civil grand jury often does a public service in shining the light of
public attention on issues or problems that may not be well known, but are
important to the community.
The
2019 statistics showcased in the jury’s report are good reason for the county
and community medical-care providers to do more in addressing opioid abuse and
overdose deaths.
They
can be prevented by providing medical care providers the tools they need and by
taking measures that limit access to such dangerous drugs.
There
is no question, the county has done a lot in recent years to try to respond to
a situation that was clearly out of control. The grand jury has shined the
spotlight on the need to do more and effective measures that can make a
difference — including saving lives
Marin
Independent Journal
By MARIN IJ EDITORIAL BOARD
January 3, 2021
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