The deadly consequences of drug use in Oregon continue to worsen. One addiction specialist credits the influx of fentanyl and gaps in the state’s treatment system as the major driving factors.
“Fentanyl is a game changer because it's 50 to 100 times more potent than heroin,” said Dr. Todd Korthuis, Head of Addiction Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University. “It's cheaper, easier to access, and deadlier.”
One of the consequences has been the dramatic rise in Oregon’s overdose deaths. According to Korthuis, 1,114 Oregonians died of an overdose between April 2021 and April 2022, an 18.5% increase over the previous year. On average, the nation saw a 6.9% increase in overdose deaths during that same time frame.
While a nearly 19% increase seems alarming, Korthuis said the spike correlates almost directly with the introduction of fentanyl to the west coast.
In 2022, Medford Police Department seized 57,313 fentanyl pills – a 320% increase from the previous year – and 17.05 lbs of fentanyl powder – a 2600% increase.
“What we're seeing is sadly a catch-up with other parts of the country where fentanyl has been around longer,” Korthuis said.
The DEA recently analyzed the content of the pressed fentanyl tabs. It found 42% of tablets had more than 2 milligrams of fentanyl, which is a lethal dose.
Korthuis said because fentanyl is more powerful than most opioids, a person overdosing on fentanyl will need more naloxone to reverse the overdose.
“What happens is the initial injection of naloxone can reverse some of it but then those sites are immediately replaced with more fentanyl that's still hanging out in the body,” Korthuis said.
With the influx of fentanyl into Oregon, Korthuis suggested additional funding to harm-reduction services, like clean syringes and naloxone, to help close one of the gaps.
“Direct distribution of naloxone kits to community members most in need resulted in more than 1,000 overdose reversals in the past year,” Korthuis said in a recent testimony to the Oregon Senate Committee on Judiciary and Ballot Measure 110 Implementation.
Finding an exact number for how much Measure 110 funding has been used on harm-reduction services has been difficult to locate. According to an Oregon Health Authority spokesperson, they don’t keep a breakdown of those funds despite requiring grantees to report service data and fiscal data periodically.
News10 dug into BHRN Grantee Funding information to get a better idea of those funds. In Jackson County, five total partners were approved funding for harm-reduction services. Out of those five, only three were solely focused on these services.
Jackson County Health & Human Services, Max’s Mission, and Stabbin’ Wagon have used $1,138,640 towards harm-reduction services. That’s 11% of the roughly $17.5 million Jackson County has received and only 60% of the $1,912,721 the three organizations were allocated.
The other major gap in Measure 110 funding is the lack of prevention and awareness campaigns to prevent drug use in the first place.
“For a lot of people, it's easier to think about experimenting with a pill that they get online or from a friend than it is to think about shooting up heroin and that's the danger,” Korthuis said.
He said addressing prevention in teens and young adults can make a big difference quickly.
According to a recent presentation given by Korthuis at an Opioid Settlement Board Meeting, teens and young adults are the most overlooked at-risk group. For teens ages 15-19, there was a 905% fentanyl death rate increase from 2021 compared to 2019.
“The fentanyl overdose epidemic is one of the most substantial public health challenges we've encountered and it's going to require every tool in the toolbox,” Korthuis said.
Local school districts like Medford School District and Grants Pass School District say drug prevention is taught as part of the health curriculum, which gets taught in each grade. Additional investments are made possible through School Resource Officers, which both Medford School District and Central Point School District utilize during Drug Prevention Week.
Medford School District had one on-campus overdose in the 2021-2022 school year.
Korthuis said decreasing overdose deaths is going to take bridging sectors and jurisdictions, like addressing treatment staffing shortages and bringing back the help of law enforcement. As for educational initiatives, he says funding can have the highest impact when funneled into more school-based programs.
Oregon has already proposed a bill to protect teachers and staff when administering naloxone to a student experiencing an overdose.