https://www.americancityandcounty.com/wp-content/themes/acc_child/assets/images/logo/footer-logo.png
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcast
    • Latest videos
    • Product Guides
  • Resources & Events
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • IWCE 2022
    • How to Contribute
    • Municipal Cost Index – Archive
    • Equipment Watch Page
    • American City & County Awards
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Statement
    • Terms of Service
American City and County
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Co-op Solutions
  • Hybrid Work
  • Commentaries
  • News
  • In-Depth
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Podcasts
    • Latest videos
    • Product Guides
  • Resources/Events
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers/eBooks
    • IWCE Expo
    • Calendar of Events
    • How to Contribute
    • American City & County Awards
    • Municipal Cost Index
    • Equipment Watch Page
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Stament
    • Terms of Service
  • newsletter
  • Administration
  • Economy & Finance
  • Procurement
  • Public Safety
  • Public Works & Utilities
  • Smart Cities & Technology
  • Magazine
acc.com

Commentaries


Sponsored

What cities can do with social safety nets and data to reduce opioid deaths

What cities can do with social safety nets and data to reduce opioid deaths

Doug Peeples, readiness editor of the Smart Cities Council, explains new strategies for addressing the opioid crisis.
  • Written by contributor
  • 21st February 2018

By Doug Peeples, Smart Cities Council
 

Every 19 minutes someone dies from an opioid overdose, primarily prescribed drugs such as oxycontin and hydrocodone and the illegal drug heroin. That number reflects a staggering increase in opioid use and accidental deaths. And the rate of increase in medication-assisted treatment comes nowhere close to the almost 500% rate of increase in 'opioid use disorder' diagnoses identified from 2010 through 2016, according to a Blue Cross Blue Shield report released last year.

A group of professionals in the field and a city mayor spoke about how a data-driven social safety net can save lives during a panel discussion at Smart Cities Week in Washington, D.C. Their thoughts on the extent of the problem and new solutions offer guidance and insights for city leaders, health officials and social service agencies.

Opioids, both prescribed and illegal, cause more deaths in the U.S. than guns and car accidents, and the 59,000 opioid-related accidental deaths recorded in 2016 is said by some sources to be the highest ever in the country's history. Reversing that trend is a very tall order for public and private health professionals and the other agencies committed to the task.

Budgets and resources are both tight for many cities. And for Evan Behrle, director of addiction treatment for the Baltimore City Health Department, even more so. Maryland is one of the East Coast states with the country's highest opioid-related death rates. The city has trained thousands of citizens in the use of Naloxone, commonly referred to by its brand name Narcan, which can reverse opioid overdoses — and as Behrle said, those citizens are saving the lives of friends and family members.

The problem as he put it is, "We don't have as much Naloxone as we need. It's expensive even though it's generic."

Behrle also said treatment is often not available in rural areas. "We shouldn’t accept that there are places in America that don't have treatment available." He also recommended a treatment infrastructure, one that connects people who need help with those who have the ability to treat them.

Revere, Massachusetts Mayor Brian Arrigo echoed Behrle's sentiment. "We have some federal and state funding, but it's never enough money." The city earlier this year issued a warning about heroin mixed with the much stronger opioid fentanyl because of the high number of overdose deaths in the community of about 53,000 residents. Firefighters have carried Narcan since 2010 and police are now carrying it too.

Local officials are working on a strategy to have all city agencies work together to find alternate funding sources rather than be obligated to following the rules that come with state and federal money.

What about data? How can it help?
For Steven Kearney, PharmD medical director for state and local government at SAS Institute, data analytics can accomplish several things. It can help identify the "bad players," anomalies in practices and claims and changes in rules. But machine learning will be needed to fully take advantage of that data. He added that physicians need to be educated to be more selective regarding when and why they prescribe opioids — when they are effective and when they aren't.

Jacob Levenson, CEO of health management platform company MAP Health Management, noted that one problem is that data that could help treatment providers determine how and when to intervene for a patient is frequently unavailable. Data on patient relapses is often not available until months later and physicians may have no idea a patient is an opioid user — even though that data exists.

City outreach and engagement
"We're trying to identify every place where we could intervene for treatment. Eight out of 11 Baltimore hospitals have overdose survivor programs," Behrle said. He also recommended Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion, a program pioneered in Seattle, Washington and in use in Baltimore that takes people out of the legal system and diverts them directly to treatment.

"Most of these strategies are about engagement and we have nothing without engagement," Levenson added, referring to mothers and fathers helping their children and how much they can contribute to treatment solutions and the data needed to ensure those solutions are timely and effective. "The earlier we can intervene, the better outcome we're going to have — and it takes good data to do it."

 

Doug Peeples is Readiness Editor of the Smart Cities Council, which works to help cities use technology to become more livable, workable and sustainable. Register for the Council’s next Smart Cities Week Silicon Valley, May 7-9 in Santa Clara, CA.

 

 

 

Tags: Expert Insights Smart Cities & Technology Smart Cities Solutions Commentaries Smart Cities Council Sponsored

Most Recent


  • digital
    How to leverage digital tools to drive innovation in government
    The rapid evolution of digital technologies transformed the way governments function, making them more efficient, transparent and citizen-friendly. Rather than relying on crystal trophies, governments can leverage digital tools to drive innovation and streamline processes, benefiting the population they serve. Open data and crowdsourcing Open data refers to making government data available to the public, […]
  • Broadband
    Oversight committee addresses NTIA reauthorization, FCC broadband map ahead of BEAD Program funding allocations
    As technological advancements continue to roll out at a breakneck pace, from artificial intelligence to high speed broadband connectivity, investment in digital infrastructure has become a defining theme of the modern era. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, (R-Wash.), chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, stressed the importance of this charge in opening remarks at […]
  • zero trust
    Zero trust is a great strategy but a terrible name
    The monthly town hall meeting was going well until they got to the agenda item called “zero trust.” What was to be a routine request for additional funding to implement a zero-trust environment quickly became one of confusion and misunderstanding. Trust in government at all levels has continued its downward spiral over the years. So, […]
  • ransomware
    Dallas ransomware attack shuts down systems, forces public safety to use backup communication protocols
    For the last week, information technology administrators in Dallas have been working around the clock to mitigate the impact of a widespread ransomware attack that disrupted business, caused first responders to impliment backup communication protocols, and took public-facing digital infrastructure offline. Since the early morning hours of last Wednesday, when ransomware was discovered in the […]

Related Content

  • North Texas alliance partners with Marketplace.city on smart government solutions
  • Harris County deploys next-generation security in 150 public buildings
  • Prioritizing rapid restore leads to stronger ransomware attack recovery
  • Today’s infrastructure needs greater than roads and bridges - It’s time to face our digital connectiveness

WHITE PAPERS


5 reasons why Plan Examiners need Objective Trapeze

30th May 2023

7 Permitting & Licensing Fails Slowing Community Growth

24th May 2023

The Secret Ingredient to Local Government Employee Retention

23rd May 2023
view all

Webinars


How to Centralize and Build a Grants Management Process at your Organization

24th May 2023

Making Permitting Easier: What We’ve Learned Helping America’s Largest Cities Improve Their Permitting Process

16th May 2023

Digital Property Tax Collection: Tales from the Trenches of Modernization

16th May 2023
view all

Podcast


Young Leaders Episode 4 – Cyril Jefferson – City Councilman, High Point, North Carolina

13th October 2020

Young Leaders Episode 3 – Shannon Hardin – City Council President, Columbus, Ohio

27th July 2020

Young Leaders Episode 2 – Christian Williams – Development Services Planner, Goodyear, Ariz.

1st July 2020
view all

GALLERIES


Gallery: Annual index ranks America’s top performing cities; most are in the West

30th May 2023

Gallery: Top 10 American cities for seasonal and summer jobs

25th May 2023

Gallery: 10 of America’s most affordable cities

9th May 2023
view all

Twitter


AmerCityCounty

5 reasons why Plan Examiners need Objective Trapeze dlvr.it/Sptl5z

30th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

Navigating crises with confidence: Five ways strategic plans support crisis response dlvr.it/SptVKN

30th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

Gallery: Annual index ranks America’s top performing cities; most are in the West dlvr.it/SpszdK

30th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

2022 Crown Communities Award winner: Miami-Dade County Clerk of Courts’ jury selection system dlvr.it/SphCBk

26th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

Gallery: Top 10 American cities for seasonal and summer jobs dlvr.it/SpdFWy

25th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

How to leverage digital tools to drive innovation in government dlvr.it/Spcktb

25th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

With many cities facing a fiscal cliff as ARPA funding ends, debt ceiling debate continues on Capitol Hill dlvr.it/SpZLph

24th May 2023
AmerCityCounty

7 Permitting & Licensing Fails Slowing Community Growth dlvr.it/SpYqBS

24th May 2023

Newsletters

Sign up for American City & County’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about local governments.

Resale Insights Dashboard

The Resale Insights Dashboard provides model-level data for the entire used equipment market to help you save time and money.

Municipal Cost Index

Updated monthly since 1978, our exclusive Municipal Cost Index shows the effects of inflation on the cost of providing municipal services

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital audience? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • IWCE’s Urgent Communications
  • IWCE Expo

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

FOLLOW American City and County ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2023 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.