During the first two months of this year, 2,800 doses of Narcon already have been handed out to people in Montgomery County to have on hand in case someone they love overdoses on drugs.
In 2021, Narcan was administered to 624 people who had overdosed in Montgomery County, thereby saving 605 lives, according to a three-hour hearing Monday by the Health and Human Services, Education and Culture and Public Safety committees of the county council.
Between July 2021 and January 2023, county emergency medical service personnel administered 900 Narcon doses, the most occurring in Silver Spring (270). Rockville had the second most at 268 doses.
During 2020, 521 people received Narcan, which saved 492 lives, according to testimony at the committee hearing in which committee members learned about an opioid and fentanyl crisis among people from county, police and school officials.
“We need a unified way to end deaths,” said Councilmember Will Jawando. “This is all hands-on deck.”
“This is a crisis, but this is not a new crisis,” said Councilmember Sidney Katz. He added, “We cannot afford not to have the resources” to deal with the drug crisis.
According to Police Chief Marcus Jones, “We’ve been dealing with opioid abuses for 10 plus years in this county.” His department sends a counselor to every overdose case to try and learn where that person got his or her drugs. “That’s our main focus,” he said.
According to Assistant Chief Nicholas Augustine, more than 80% of the drugs they analyze have fentanyl in them and are not the drug that the person thought it was.
He urged everyone to make sure they know and trust the person who gave them the drug, because all too often the drug they believe they are taking has been disguised to look familiar but is laced with a deadly additive.
Councilmember Natali Fani-Gonzalez has spoken with parents whose children have died of an overdose or are in crisis. One mother told her, “She begged to get her kid in a rehab center, but there were no beds,” she said during the hearing.
According to Sara Rose, operations manager with Local Behavioral Health Authority, “Currently in the state of Maryland, there is not a rehabilitation place for young people.” There used to be three, but they closed in 2017 and 2019, she said.
Jawando suggested the council ask Gov. Wes Moore for funds to open a youth rehab center.
Committee members noted there were many mental health issues involved in drug overdoses.
“We know already we cannot arrest or suspend anybody out of this,” said Laura Mitchell of Montgomery County Purple.
At worksession discussing opioid and fentanyl crisis affecting youth. pic.twitter.com/tXsdq6ymIA
— Natali Fani-González (@NataliFGonzalez) February 27, 2023
Happening today at 9:30 a.m. #TuneIn live @CountyCableMoCo, Facebook or YouTube https://t.co/NtUEVFrk4B. https://t.co/xKjiVCZw59
— Montgomery Council (@MoCoCouncilMD) February 27, 2023
