Health Officials Urge Individuals, Families to Seek Treatment or Access to Naloxone in Wake of Six Suspected Heroin Overdose Deaths

NEW CASTLE (July 25, 2017) – Health and public safety officials are urging people in active use of heroin or other opioids and their families to seek immediate treatment or have the overdose-reversing medication naloxone on hand in the wake of six suspected heroin overdose deaths in the past three weeks involving specific stamps.

Through death investigations, the Division of Forensic Science identified two separate stamps on packets that are suspected of being used by the six individuals or were found at the scenes of their deaths. The division is doing toxicology testing of the substances involved and also testing the remaining packets to determine the specific content.

The six suspected overdose deaths – five in New Castle County and one in Sussex – all occurred within the past three weeks, Division of Forensic Science staff reported. Through July 24, the Division of Forensic Science has reported a total of 125 suspected overdose deaths in Delaware.

“While the Division of Forensic Science determines the particular chemical make-up of the substances involved in these deaths, it is critical that people be aware of the dangers,” Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) Secretary Dr. Kara Odom Walker said. “If you see someone overdose, call 9-1-1 immediately. First responders have three to five minutes to administer naloxone, which can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, and save the person in distress.”

Naloxone and Narcan
Naloxone and Narcan displayed during the signing of a bill providing for increased access to it in Delaware.

Last week in Dover, Governor John Carney signed legislation providing for increased access to naloxone at pharmacies in Delaware. With this legislation signed, DHSS’ Division of Public Health (DPH) is building partnerships with pharmacies across the state to make naloxone more widely available as soon as possible. People will be able to buy naloxone at the pharmacy counter in participating pharmacies after they are educated on the appropriate use of the medication and sign an acknowledgement form.

“Naloxone saves lives,” said DPH Director Dr. Karyl Rattay. “With specific heroin packets appearing to be extremely dangerous, we urge anyone who needs access to naloxone to connect with Brandywine Counseling & Community Services, which operates the syringe services program for the Division of Public Health, or to attend a Community Naloxone Training class provided by Brandywine Counseling.”

In 2016, naloxone was administered to 1,535 individuals by paramedics, police and other first responders in Delaware. In the first half of this year, the antidote was administered to 866 people in Delaware.

Dr. Clay Watson, acting director of the Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health, urged individuals in active substance use to see a medical provider immediately or call DHSS’ 24/7 Crisis Services Hotline to be connected to trained crisis professionals who can discuss treatment options. In New Castle County, the number is 1-800-652-2929. In Kent and Sussex counties, the number is 1-800-345-6785. Individuals and families also can visit DHSS’ website, www.HelpIsHereDE.com, for addiction treatment and recovery services in Delaware and nearby states.

Secretary Walker encouraged anyone who is using or suffering from addiction to call for help or to ask a police officer or another first responder for help. “Too many times, our police officers and other first responders see first-hand the dangers of fentanyl-related overdoses,” she said. “Our first priority is to save lives.”

Under Delaware’s 911/Good Samaritan Law, people who call 9-1-1 to report an overdose and the person in medical distress cannot be arrested for low-level drug crimes.

In 2016, the Division of Forensic Science confirmed the presence of fentanyl in 109 of the 308 total fatal overdoses. Fentanyl is a synthetic painkiller that is up to 50 times more potent than heroin. In 2015, fentanyl was confirmed in 32 of the 229 total overdose deaths.

Drug dealers sell fentanyl in a variety of ways, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Dealers sell pure fentanyl in white powder form to users who assume they are buying heroin. They lace cocaine or heroin with fentanyl. And they press fentanyl into pills and pass them off as OxyContin.

When a user ingests fentanyl or a drug laced with fentanyl, it affects the central nervous system and brain. Because it is such a powerful opioid, users often have trouble breathing or can stop breathing as the drug sedates them. If someone is too drowsy to answer questions, is having difficulty breathing, or appears to be so asleep they cannot be awakened, call 9-1-1 immediately.


Department of Justice, Division of Public Health To Provide Lifesaving Opioid Antidote to Law Enforcement Agencies

As part of the state’s ongoing effort to reduce the number of heroin and opioid related deaths in Delaware, Attorney General Matt Denn allocated funds to be used to purchase approximately 450 naloxone kits for law enforcement agencies through a partnership with the Delaware Division of Public Health (DPH). The approximately $50,000 for the purchase comes from the state’s Special Law Enforcement Assistance Fund (SLEAF).

Administration of naloxone can reverse the potentially fatal respiratory depression caused by overdose of heroin and other opioids. Availability of naloxone to law enforcement, emergency medical providers, school nurses and trained community volunteers have been expanding over the past two years, spurred by legislative measures and efforts by government agencies to purchase or get donated doses of naloxone. Police officers in six departments — New Castle County, Elsmere, Newark, Middletown, Smyrna and Ocean View — have saved lives with the naloxone they were carrying.

The allocation was recommended by the SLEAF Committee consisting of representatives of law enforcement from around the state, based on an application submitted by the Department of Justice (DOJ).

“When releasing my plan to address substance use disorders last summer, I specifically encouraged our state’s law enforcement community to expand the number of officers who carry naloxone,” said Attorney General Denn, “but unfortunately, the cost of the medication made it prohibitive. I’m very pleased that the SLEAF application, drafted by Deputy Attorney General Mike Undorf from our Fraud & Consumer Protection Division, received all of the necessary approvals and will soon put this lifesaving tool in the hands of our officers.”

In 2014, Gov. Jack Markell signed legislation allowing law enforcement departments to carry and administer naloxone.

“The first step toward recovery from addiction is to save the life,” Department of Health and Social Services Secretary Rita Landgraf said. “We are grateful that Attorney General Denn and the Special Law Enforcement Assistance Fund believe that providing naloxone to more police officers is an important step in breaking the horrific cycle of addiction. Once an individual’s life is saved, we can connect them to treatment so they can live a full and healthy life in long-term recovery.”

DPH will purchase and distribute the kits over the next two to three months.

“Delaware is in the middle of an opioid addiction epidemic like much of the nation,” said DPH Director Dr. Karyl Rattay. “Too many people are dying. Naloxone is a proven method for reversing drug overdoses and expanding access in the community can save lives. We are so pleased Attorney General Denn is securing the funding to meet this important community need.”

Advocacy organization atTAcK Addiction has been one of the leading proponents of naloxone deployment in Delaware.

“atTAcK addiction is extremely pleased to hear of this funding source for the lifesaving medication naloxone,” said atTAcK Addiction board member David Humes. “Currently only 6 of 47 departments of peace officers are trained and carrying naloxone. With greater funding availability we believe it will eliminate a perceived obstacle to those departments of law enforcement who wish to put a priority on saving lives.”

SLEAF is funded by money obtained through criminal forfeiture actions, and is administered through the Department of Justice to enhance the suppression, investigation and prosecution of criminal activity, promote officer safety, facilitate the training of law-enforcement personnel, further public safety, public education, and community awareness and improve victim services.

The funding for expanded use of naloxone was one piece of a plan announced by the Attorney General last August to reduce overdose deaths. Other proposals underway include: strengthening regulations that govern the amount of care that health care providers must exercise in prescribing opiate drugs, with revised regulations are currently out for public comment; and creation of a commission to review deaths caused by prescription opiate and heroin overdoses, approved recently by the General Assembly and Governor in Senate Bill 174.


First Reports of Community Members Using Naloxone

DHSS Receives First Reports of Community Members Using Naloxone to Revive Loved Ones Who Overdosed

NEW CASTLE – The Department of Health and Social Services has received the first reports of people in Delaware overdosing on opiates and being revived by community members who administered the overdose-reversing medication naloxone themselves.

Individuals who participate in the state’s Syringe Exchange Program in Wilmington, coordinated by Brandywine Counseling, are receiving auto-injector naloxone units through a donation by kaléo, the Richmond, Va., company that manufactures the medication called Evzio. Participants are trained by Brandywine Counseling staff on how to use the naloxone.

“Heroin and the misuse of prescription painkillers are so dangerous that in order to connect people to treatment for their addiction, sometimes we must save their lives first,” DHSS Secretary Rita Landgraf said. “The new community naloxone bill, which Governor Markell signed into law last summer, is giving people in Delaware the opportunity to save their loved ones’ lives. Our hope is that people in the throes of addiction will now embrace treatment for their disease and the opportunity for a lasting recovery.”

In June 2014, Gov. Markell signed into law a bill expanding the use of naloxone by members of the community who take a training class in how to administer it. Almost 300 people, including Secretary Landgraf, have been trained to use an intranasal spray version of naloxone and carry the medication with them to save the life of a loved one or friend in the event of an overdose.

Domenica Personti, Brandywine Counseling’s director of adolescent services and prevention, said in the first case happened on Aug. 30, when a Syringe Exchange Program client saved a friend’s life who had overdosed. The client was “so grateful to have been offered the training and medication in order to save her friend’s life,” Personti said. Brandywine Counseling refilled her naloxone prescription.

On Sept. 7, Personti said a second client of the Syringe Exchange Program used the auto-injector naloxone unit to revive her girlfriend after she overdosed. Both women were expected to come into Brandywine Counseling to be assessed for treatment services, Personti said.

“By expanding naloxone access, we have equipped individuals with a life-saving tool in response to the terrible outcome often associated with opiate use,” Personti said. “Because of this, two individuals were able to go home to their loved ones.”

In the wake of a growing number of overdose deaths, DHSS and atTAcK addiction, a grassroots advocacy group in Delaware, helped to facilitate the donation earlier this year of 2,000 naloxone units from kaléo. The donation went to addiction treatment centers like Brandywine Counseling, participating police departments and school nurses in Delaware’s high schools.

“atTAcK addiction is extremely grateful that our partnership with DHSS is saving lives,” said David Humes, one of the group’s founding members. “The Kristen L. Jackson and John M. Perkins Jr. 911 Good Samaritan Law and complementary expanded naloxone laws do save lives. We will continue to advocate for effective policy changes that will increase and expand treatment options for those suffering with substance use disorder. Where there is life, there is hope of recovery from the disease of addiction.”

Brandywine Counseling’s next community naloxone training class is at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 23, at Stubbs Elementary School, 110 N. Pine St., Wilmington. Subsequent sessions are at 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 22, at New Castle County Police Department Headquarters, 3601 N. DuPont Highway, New Castle; and at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12, at the Ocean View Police Department, 201 Central Ave., Ocean View.

In 2014, a total of 185 people died from suspected overdoses in Delaware, or about one person every other day. Many of those overdoses were the result of heroin or prescription painkillers, which can be reversed by administering naloxone. In addition to expanded use among police officers, community members and school nurses, Delaware paramedics also administer naloxone in overdose situations. In 2014, they administered it 1,244 times, reviving 668 people, according to the Division of Public Health. The antidote also is used in emergency rooms.

For more information, contact Jill Fredel, Director of Communications, (302) 255-9047 (office) or (302) 357-7498 (cell).

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Delaware Health and Social Services is committed to improving the quality of the lives of Delaware’s citizens by promoting health and well-being, fostering self-sufficiency, and protecting vulnerable populations.


Donation of Naloxone Auto-Injector Units Will Expand Access to Overdose-Reversing Antidote

Large Donation of Naloxone Auto-Injector Units Will Expand Access to Overdose-Reversing Antidote for High School Nurses, Police Officers and Addiction Treatment Centers

NEWS FROM THE DELAWARE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES

NEW CASTLE – As a new school year starts, nurses in Delaware’s public high schools will have access to the overdose-reversing drug naloxone through a donation to the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) from a company that manufactures naloxone auto-injector units.

After receiving the donation of 2,000 naloxone units, DHSS is distributing the auto-injector kits called Evzio to the Department of Education, addiction treatment centers and participating police departments. The donation was made by kaléo, the Richmond, Va., company that manufactures Evzio. DHSS and AtTAcK addiction, a grassroots advocacy group in Delaware, helped to facilitate the donation in the wake of a growing number of overdose deaths.

In 2014, a total of 185 people died from suspected overdoses in Delaware, or about one person every other day. Many of those overdoses were the result of heroin or prescription painkillers, which can be reversed by administering naloxone. From January through July of this year, there have been 78 suspected overdose deaths.

“We know the availability of naloxone in emergency rooms, ambulances and police cars leads to hundreds of lives being saved and we are grateful to kaléo for their generous donation,” Gov. Jack Markell. “With this donation, we will be able to reverse more overdoses and work with individuals to get them the treatment they need in order to live full, healthy lives.”

“We are pleased to be making this donation as a part of our commitment to widen access to naloxone,” said Spencer Williamson, CEO of kaléo. “Even people who take their opioid pain medications as prescribed can be at risk for an opioid emergency, such as an overdose. On average, 44 people die each day from prescription opioid overdose alone, and more than 80 percent of those are unintentional. We are honored to support the State of Delaware’s efforts to equip citizens with naloxone and help save the lives of those who are experiencing an opioid emergency.”

In 2014, Gov. Markell signed two pieces of legislation expanding the use of naloxone. One allows for wider use in the community, and the other allows for voluntary use among law enforcement departments. About 300 community members have been trained to use naloxone. And three police departments – New Castle County, Middletown and Ocean View – all have saved people who overdosed because officers are carrying the antidote. In April, a Senate resolution allowing for the expanded use of naloxone among school nurses passed both houses of the General Assembly. The resolution, sponsored by Sen. Bethany Hall-Long, provides for the expanded use beginning this fall.

Dr. Linda C. Wolfe, director of School Support Services in the Department of Education, said providing naloxone to school nurses in Delaware’s high schools is a proactive approach. “I am unaware of any deaths occurring in a school due to overdose – anywhere in the nation,” Wolfe said. “However, given the rate of overdose and death in Delaware, we are supporting Public Health’s proactive outreach to community partners who work with vulnerable populations.” Naloxone is considered a safe medication and will not cause further harm to an individual who receives it.

In June, the National Association of School Nurses adopted a position paper supporting the use of naloxone in schools, citing the 2013 Partnership Attitude Tracking Study in which almost one in four American teens (23 percent) reported abusing or misusing a prescription drug at least once in their lifetimes, and one in six (16 percent) reported doing so within the past year.

AtTAcK addiction, which helped to facilitate the donation, said the focus needs to be on saving lives.

“AtTAcK addiction is extremely grateful to kaléo, Inc., and DHSS for working together to receive a substantial donation of this life-saving medication,” said David Humes, a founding member of atTAcK addiction. “Our hope is that the availability of Evzio and its ease of administering will break down perceived obstacles to departments of peace officers carrying the medication. As a state, we need to continue to put the focus on saving lives and ending the epidemic of substance use disorder.”

In addition to expanded use among police officers, community members and school nurses, Delaware paramedics also administer naloxone in overdose situations. In 2014, they administered it 1,244 times, reviving 668 people, according to the Division of Public Health. The antidote also is used in emergency rooms.

DHSS Secretary Rita Landgraf, who has been trained to use naloxone and carries a kit, thanked kaléo for the donation.

“In any public health epidemic, our first goal is to save as many lives as possible,” Secretary Landgraf said. “We are extremely grateful to kaléo for this generous donation that will allow us to extend the reach of this life-saving medication.”

The Evzio donation is a short-term boost to naloxone supplies across the state because the units have an expiration date of February 2016. By then, Secretary Landgraf said, she hopes other options to expand the availability of naloxone will be successful.

NOTE TO MEDIA: Photos of the Evzio unit are available for download at DHSS’ flickr account:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/deldhss/albums/72157657715501406

For more information, contact Jill Fredel, Director of Communications, (302) 255-9047 (office) or (302) 357-7498 (cell).

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Delaware Health and Social Services is committed to improving the quality of the lives of Delaware’s citizens by promoting health and well-being, fostering self-sufficiency, and protecting vulnerable populations.


Governor Markell Signs Bill Authorizing Law Enforcement to Carry, Administer Anti-Overdose Medication

New Castle, DE – Joined by elected officials, law enforcement officers, first responders, non-profit leaders, and families who have lost loved ones to drug overdoses, Governor Markell today signed legislation authorizing law enforcement officers to carry Naloxone, a prescription drug that counteracts the effects of opioid-related overdoses.

House Bill 388, sponsored by Rep. Mike Barbieri (D – Newark) and Sens. Bethany Hall-Long (D – Middletown) and Karen Peterson (D – Stanton), allows peace officers who have completed a Delaware Health and Social Services approved training course to receive, carry, and administer the drug Naloxone, and provides immunity to officers who administer the drug in good faith.  Under HB 388, a “peace officer” is any public officer authorized to make arrests in criminal cases.

“By equipping law enforcement officers with an important tool to prevent deadly overdoses, we can help reduce the toll that heroin and other dangerous opiates are taking on our state,” said Governor Markell. “This simple piece of legislation has the potential to save lives.”

At today’s event, held at the New Castle County Public Safety Building, Rep. Barbieri thanked Governor Markell for his focus on addiction and for making changes in the treatment system.

“We need to keep individuals who are suffering from addiction alive so they can enter recovery,” said Rep. Barbieri, adding that the wider access to naloxone also helps “to protect the public generally.”

During the last week of the Legislative Session, Governor Markell signed a companion bill to this legislation. Senate Bill 219 allows family, friends and members of the community to buy naloxone after they have been trained by the Department of Health and Social Services.

“This builds on our efforts to make this life-saving drug available to friends and family members of people who are addicted to this destructive drug,” said Sen. Hall-Long, who also sponsored SB 219. “By expanding access and training we can save even more lives.”

The new laws reinforce previous efforts to combat prescription drug abuse, which kills more Delawareans every year than traffic accidents.

“As we know, Delaware is battling a serious heroin problem and putting this drug in the hands of properly trained police will save lives,” said Sen. Peterson. “I hope that people saved by Naloxone will recognize their good fortune and take the steps needed to put their lives on a new path.”

Photos from the event