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EDITORIAL: Opioid epidemic rages amid COVID pandemic

3 min read
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Huntington, W.Va., sits at the crossroads between Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia, and has endured its share of tribulation since the decline of the coal industry dampened its economic prospects and sent many residents fleeing to places that offer more in the way of opportunity and prosperity.

A little more than a decade ago, it was deemed the unhealthiest city in America. More recently, opioids have had the city in its grip, with 28 residents overdosing in four hours in one horrific afternoon in August 2016.

Before the pandemic, officials in Huntington believed they had brought the epidemic of opioid abuse under control. But the Associated Press recently visited the community and found that, like a hurricane that everyone figured had gone out to sea, opioids were back, and back with a vengeance.

Huntington may be suffering right now, but it is hardly alone. More than 88,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in the 12 months ending in August 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the highest number of overdose deaths reported in a 12-month span. That’s 30,000 more Americans than died in the Vietnam War. In that same time period, the CDC found overdose deaths had increased by 27% in Pennsylvania and a truly horrifying 38% in West Virginia.

In February, the Observer-Reporter noted that officials throughout the region were concerned about the rising tide of opioid addiction and overdoses, which has been fueled by the isolation brought by the pandemic, along with the stress and, in some cases, joblessness that have been byproducts of COVID-19. And the reversal of fortune when it comes to fighting opioids has not received the attention it might otherwise have gotten before COVID-19, the contentious presidential election and the protests following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Connie Priddy, a nurse with Huntington’s Emergency Medical Services, told AP that the last year has been “a horrible human experiment” when it comes to fighting addiction.

“It was like a horrible human experiment,” Priddy said. “Take human contact and personal interaction away from an individual and see how it much it affects them. You would never ever do that in real life. But COVID did it for us.”

Given the way that COVID-19 has impacted every facet of our lives, it’s understandable why it has taken center stage for elected officials and public health leaders. However, once the pandemic is finally brought to heel, fighting the “epidemic within the pandemic” needs to return to the fore. Gov. Tom Wolf signed the 13th renewal of a statewide opioid disaster declaration in February, and the federal stimulus packages approved in December and March contained funding for treatment of substance abuse and mental health issues. Even then, some people say a commitment of $125 billion from the federal government is what would be needed to fully combat the opioid epidemic.

That’s a lot of money, for sure. But without it, we could be paying a higher cost in lives lost and communities destroyed.

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