BARTHOLOMEW COUNTY, Ind. — The CDC said it saw the the highest number of overdose deaths ever recorded in a 12 month period during the pandemic.
“It hits pretty much all demographics of society,” said Chris Lane, Chief Deputy of Bartholomew Sheriff’s Office.
Like the rest of the country, Columbus, Indiana in Bartholomew County has also seen an increase in suspected overdose cases.
The CDC said, “while overdose deaths were already increasing in the months preceding the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the latest numbers suggest an acceleration of overdose deaths during the pandemic.”
“The pandemic created the perfect storm for the substance abuse disorder community,” said
Nathan Walsh, Director of the Alliance of Substance Abuse Progress (ASAP) Hub recovery resource center in Columbus, Indiana.
“One of the first things we say is don’t isolate. Well, they were unable to go to recovery meetings because recovery meetings were closed, employers laid people off,” added Walsh. Walsh also said he felt stimulus checks may have contributed to the pandemic as some people were receiving more money than they would have made at their job and therefore had extra cash.
“The prevalence of fentanyl is very high on the streets and the users themselves are preferring to purchase fentanyl rather than heroin,” said Lane.
ASAP works with both the private and public sector to prevent and intervening in situations where people are suffering from substance abuse disorder.
“We saw an uptick in overdose deaths in 2020 up to 31 when we had begun to start to see a decline in previous years,” said Matthew Neville, Director of Operations for ASAP.
This uptick prompted ASAP, the city, the county, hospitals, and law enforcement to come together for a joint message
“We’ve had eleven confirmed or suspected overdose deaths since March first (and) we wanted to alert the community and keep as many of our members safe as we can,” said Neville. And in addition to alerting the community of the issue, ASAP and it’s partners wanted to also let people know that “Narcan can absolutely be life saving” said Neville.
ASAP provides free Narcan doses to anyone who wants one, all they have to do is come by the United Way Center in Columbus at 1531 13th street. ASAP will also provide a quick tutorial on how to use the nasal spray.
“Since March first, we’ve distributed more than 450 doses of Narcan into the community,” said Neville.
“Compared to last year just with Narcan usage from the last year was 5 around this time last year to nine already this year,” said Lane. The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office said it didn’t know how many of these doses were lifesaving.
Aside from providing free Narcan, ASAP also connect people suffering from substance abuse disorder with treatment resources, even if they don’t have insurance
“There are certain recovery centers that will do scholarship funds for people,” said Walsh noting that not having insurance is what may people consider to be one of the “largest barriers.” He also noted that ASAP works to find ways around it and help individuals get the assistance they need to live a life in recovery.
The city and the county are hoping people will ask for help, and community members will pick up Narcan, because the nasal spray can save a life.