Opioid City Hall in North Carolina: Put an end to the drug crisis



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ASHEVILLE, N.C. (Sinclair Broadcast Group) –

Sinclair Broadcast Group and WLOS have organized the third edition of the Town Hall Series to raise awareness of the country's most deadly drug epidemic.

Eric Bolling moderated the event as part of the series "Our voice, our future". The Town Hall was broadcast live from Asheville, North Carolina, and is available on all Sinclair websites. Bolling and his wife Adrienne became activists declared in the fight against opioid addiction after losing their 19-year-old son, victim of an accidental overdose of fentanyl in 2017.

Guests included North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, Senator Jim Davis, Waynesville Police Chief Bill Hollingsed, and Melinda Ramage, co-founder of Project CARA, a program to help pregnant women. to get treatment for addiction.

The guests focused on what was being done in North Carolina and the United States to combat the crisis through education and prevention programs, improved medical treatment and treatment drug addiction and new tools for the forces of order.

Legal and illegal opioids have affected all demographic groups and virtually all communities in the United States. In 2017, opioids were implicated in 47,600 deaths, accounting for more than 67% of all documented drug overdose deaths. According to a recent study by the National Safety Council, Americans are now more likely to die from an opioid overdose than in a road accident.

North Carolina has been particularly affected by the opioid crisis. Between 2016 and 2017, the number of opioid overdose deaths in North Carolina has increased at a rate more than three times higher than the national average. At 22.5%, it was the second fastest rate in the country.

Since then, the state has embarked on an ambitious strategic plan of action to reduce by 20% the number of opioid overdose deaths by 2021. L & # '# # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # Last year, the rate of overdose deaths in North Carolina slowed to 5.5%, according to preliminary data from the CDC, a clear improvement over the previous year. .

Since taking office in 2017, Attorney General Stein has made the fight against the opioid epidemic a top priority. According to Stein, expanding access to Medicaid would be "the most effective solution" that North Carolina can do to combat the epidemic of opioids.

"This outbreak is both a supply problem and a demand problem," Stein told Bolling. Stopping the request means tackling the problem of dependency. "We need to help them get the health care they need so that they are no longer addicted."

Studies have shown that counseling badociated with drug therapies, such as methadone or buprenorphine, is a more effective and recommended way of treating opioid dependence. However, many choose not to ask for help because of the cost of treatment. By adopting the Medicaid extension via the Affordable Care Act, Stein thinks more people will have the opportunity to get the help they need.

Republican Senator Jim Davis was suspicious of the expansion of Medicaid, but said the state and the federal government should invest more in drug treatment. The 2017 HOPE law, sponsored by Davis, provided an additional $ 10 million for state treatment starting next fiscal year.

"We need long-term care for these people," said the senator, noting that some treatments may take years or even life. "It's a modern-day scourge that we have to tackle," he said.

The state has recently received $ 31 million in federal government grants for drug treatment resources. Heads of State appreciated the funds that helped about 3,000 people. But with some 70,000 to 90,000 North Carolinians struggling with addiction, Stein said federal dollars remain "a drop in the bucket."

North Carolina is also an example of the changing opioid crisis of doctors' offices on the street. For years, prescription painkillers such as oxycodone, hydrocodone and codeine have been the leading cause of overdose of opioids in this state. In 2016, this trend began to change. While doctors and hospitals were struggling against the overprescription of these drugs, more and more Americans have turned to cheaper and more dangerous street drugs.

As in other parts of the country, heroin and fentanyl are now the leading cause of opioid overdose deaths and opioid-related emergency visits in Canada. this state. The latest data from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services show that heroin and fentanyl are responsible for the overwhelming majority of overdose deaths (80%). Nationally, fentanyl was involved in more than half of the fatal opioid overdoses.

Stein is one of many state attorneys general who sued the drug giant Lost for his alleged role in supporting the opioid epidemic. For years, Perdue has aggressively marketed opioid OxyContin and offered financial incentives to doctors who prescribed it. Stein insisted that Perdue and the pharmaceutical industry were a "main driver of this epidemic".

Attorney General Stein also promotes health care as an approach to law enforcement authorities of the state. Stopping someone for using drugs or committing a crime to feed their addiction does not break the cycle, he explained. People go to jail addicted and leave addicted.

"The forces of the order have a new approach," he continued. "Let people, as far as possible, get out of the criminal justice system to focus on health care."

Chief Bill Hollingsed focused on implementing a diversion program through law enforcement (LEAD) to break the cycle of crime and addiction . We hope to break the cycle of dependency to break their cycle of crime, "he said.

As a first responder, Hollingsed is often at the forefront of providing vital overdose reversal medications such as naloxone and Narcon, an easy-to-administer naloxone nasal spray. In 2017, first responders in North Carolina administered 15,282 doses of naloxone.

"Do not worry about it, but we sometimes call it Jesus in a bottle," Hollingsed said. The police department is currently working with schools, construction sites and others to ensure they have access to naloxone.

Sinclair launched the series "Our voice, our future" two months ago at Liberty University. The first lady, Melania Trump, led the event and spoke to students and families about opioid abuse, the third pillar of her "Be Best" initiative. She also addressed the growing problem of opioid abuse in pregnant women.

In recent years, obstetricians have seen an increase in the number of babies born with opioid dependence, called neonatal abstinence syndrome (NSS), and with withdrawal symptoms in their first few weeks of life. According to the CDC, 21,732 infants were born with opioid dependence in 2012, the equivalent of a baby born every 25 minutes.

Melinda Ramage is the medical director and co-founder of the CARA project, founded by Help, which provides comprehensive treatment for pregnant women and new mothers. The program aims to provide "safe spaces" for women and their health care providers.

The CARA project revealed that 70% of pregnant women with substance abuse problems will first confide in their obstetrician. This is partly due to the shame and shame of being pregnant and addicted, Ramage explained.

"Never in the world of addiction, there is a population more stigmatized than the pregnant woman," she said. The CARA project is working to overcome this stigma by taking an "open door" approach. The program ensures that a woman can trust that she is pregnant and struggling with addiction. The CARA project will not call either the police or the social services department, they will offer help, Ramage said.

Since its inception in 2014, the CARA project has helped hundreds of patients through the high-risk pregnancy division of the Mountain Education Health Center (MAHEC).

Sinclair's national opioid conversation continued in Washington, DC, with a public meeting held in December with senior Trump administration officials, including White House advisor Kellyanne Conway, and Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie The mayor's office has focused on the growing problem of illicit fentanyl and has also helped veterans overcome the stigma of addiction.

Last week, the public session was broadcast live from Laredo, Texas, and resulted in an in-depth and timely discussion on drugs and border security. Federal and local leaders discussed their work to stop trafficking heroin and other opioids across the southern border and to manage the drug crisis.

"Our voice, our future" seeks to raise awareness and reduce the prejudices of dependency while exploring solutions to the drug crisis and empowering those who take responsibility for it.

Sinclair Broadcast Group is committed to fighting the opioid crisis. Tuesday City Hall was broadcast live on all Sinclair websites and will be broadcast on several Sinclair stations.

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