[O]pioid-related overdose deaths in Chittenden County dropped 50 percent in 2018, with 17 deaths, as opposed to 35 the previous year.
Meanwhile, rates continue to rise across the rest of the state, with 110 total in the state last year, up two from 2017. Chittenden County itself saw gradual increases in opioid-related overdose deaths since 2013, when the state Department of Health began publishing county-by-county results, up until 2018, when the trend reversed and the county saw its lowest mark to date.
At a press conference in Burlington Thursday, Mayor Miro Weinberger attributed the success to the city’s efforts to expand, speed access to, and eliminate the stigma of opioid addiction medications.
The state uses a “hub and spoke” system for medication-assisted treatment (MAT), with regional “hubs” offering intensive treatment for complex addictions, and “spokes” offering local ongoing treatment. At Chittenden County’s MAT hub, a waiting list that was once more than 1,000 was recently reduced to zero, one of the major successes that officials pointed to, along with efforts to change the way opioids are prescribed and policed.
Data analysts noted that the 50 percent reduction the county saw is a statistically significant figure — meaning there is less than a 1 in 100 probability that it is due to chance.
Stephen Leffler, chief of emergency medicine at the UVM Medical Center, said that by simply informing doctors how their opioid prescription rates compared to that of their peers, the hospital saw a more than 60 percent reduction in opioid prescriptions.
Burlington Police Chief Brandon del Pozo said that another effective effort was having police officers start carrying opioid overdose treatment medications. He said although there was some initial hesitation from the force, when the first save was made just a few weeks into the program, his officers quickly came around.
“What we need to do is find the inner cop in all of us and redouble our efforts 24/7, 365 to end this epidemic in a way that reduces that number to as close to zero as we can possibly get it,” del Pozo said.
Weinberg thanked the Chittenden County Opioid Alliance, Howard Center, University of Vermont Medical Center and others for their partnership in tackling the issue. He said that while opioid deaths isn’t the kind of problem you set projections for, he has high hopes that 2019 follows in 2018’s footsteps — and he plans on rolling out even more initiatives in the coming weeks to make that happen.
But amidst all the talk of success, almost every speaker reminded the room that the problem of opioid-related overdose deaths is far from solved, and that 17 dead is a far cry from the zero that the county is working toward.
“Before we pat ourselves on the back and cry victory, 17 of our community members are not here with us today because our system failed them,” said Chittenden County State’s Attorney Sarah George. “I look forward to continuing these efforts and others with the community partners in this room to find additional ways we can dismantle barriers and provide open and immediate access to whatever services our struggling friends need when it’s right for them and they are ready.”
