Waitsburg addresses fentanyl and opioid overdoses

WAITSBURG—At the April 18 meeting, the Community Health and Protection Committee (CHPC) discussed drug use, overdoses, and the use of naloxone to prevent deaths from opioid deaths.

The CHPC was concerned about the increase in fentanyl use in the community. According to data from the Washington State Department of Health (DOH), fentanyl replaced methamphetamines as the drug most involved in overdoses in Washington state in 2020.

A big concern for local healthcare and law enforcement organizations is that people unknowingly purchase and use fake pharmaceuticals laced with illicit fentanyl. Counterfeit pills include fake OxyContin, Xanax, Percocet, and baby aspirin. The DOH, Walla Walla Sheriff’s Department, and local health providers warn that any medication not prescribed by a doctor or health professional and dispensed by a licensed pharmacist could be counterfeit. These fake pharmaceuticals look identical to the actual pills.

The drug naloxone can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. Examples of opioids include heroin, fentanyl, methadone, OxyContin, and Vicodin. Naloxone is free at pharmacies for people with Medicaid or Apple Health insurance, and no prescription is needed; locations can be found at stopoverdose.org.

Naloxone can be administered as an intramuscular (IM) injection or as a nasal spray. Narcan is the brand name of the nasal spray. The FDA approved Narcan for over-the-counter, non-prescription use on March 29, 2023.The DOH recommends the following people should carry naloxone:

People who use drugs.

Friends and family of people who use drugs.

Those who interact with drug users, including service providers and emergency personnel.

Residents in rural communities can have limited access to pharmacies or organizations that can provide naloxone. Waitsburg City Council Member Jillian Henze told The Times that the Community Health and Protection committee learned about a free mail order program available to Washington State residents.

The mail-order program is meant for people who can’t easily get a Naloxone kit from a community organization or a pharmacy. Individual residents may order one order per month, injectable kits have four doses, and the nasal spray kits contain two. A training video on how to use the drug is available in English and Spanish.

The People’s Harm Reduction Alliance (PHRA) administers the program and has provided health and harm reduction services to the state since 2007,

To order naloxone from this program, go to tinyurl.com/mailnax.

For more information about the People’s Harm Reduction Alliance, go to http://phra.org/mail-order-naloxone

Organizations that wish to distribute naloxone to community members can apply for the Washington Department of Health’s Overdose Education and Naloxone Distribution program at tinyurl.com/naloprog.