Opioid-related deaths decrease in Mass.

Feb. 13--BOSTON -- Deaths from opioid overdoses in Massachusetts dropped by 5% from 2016 to 2019, according to a state Department of Public Health report released Wednesday.

This was despite the growing presence of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that has caused many deaths, the report concluded.

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams said the use of naloxone, probably better known by its trade name Narcan, has helped reduce the number of opioid-related deaths nationwide.

"Research shows that when naloxone and overdose education are available to community members, overdose deaths decrease in those communities," Adams said.

The Bureau of Substance Addiction Services, a division of the Department of Public Health, recommends that clinicians administer naloxone to drug overdose victims if they are unresponsive and have reduced breathing.

In 2019, the opioid-related overdose death rate in the Bay State was 29 per 100,000 people, compared to 30.5 per 100,000 people in 2016, the Department of Public Health reported. Preliminary data show that in 2019, there were 2,023 confirmed and estimated opioid-related overdose deaths, while there were 2,097 such fatalities for the same period in 2016.

"This report demonstrates that focused investments in substance misuse are having an impact, but there is still a lot of work to do to curb the opioid epidemic in our communities," Gov. Charlie Baker said. "We are encouraged by the expanded use of the prescription monitoring program and continued reduction of new prescriptions and remain committed to making new investments in prevention, education, treatment and recovery for individuals and families across the commonwealth."

While the presence of fentanyl in the toxicology of opioid-related overdose deaths remained high at 93% from January to September 2019, the rate of heroin or likely heroin present in opioid-related overdose deaths has continued to decline since 2014 and was 25% for the first nine months of 2019, the Department of Public Health reported.

The percentage of opioid-related overdose deaths where prescription drugs were a factor decreased from 2014 through 2016 and has remained stable since then. Prescription drugs were a factor in 13% of opioid-related overdose deaths in 2019.

"This report shows progress on multiple fronts, including a reduction in Schedule II opioid prescriptions," state Health and Human Services Secretary Marylou Sudders said.

Integration of the Massachusetts Prescription Awareness Tool into larger electronic health record systems has allowed providers to more easily conduct the required checks of a patient's prescription history before prescribing Schedule II or III narcotic medications.

During the fourth quarter of 2019, slightly more than 225,000 people in the state received prescriptions for Schedule II opioids, a nearly 42% drop from the first quarter of 2015, according to the report.

"While we are steadily making progress, it is still unacceptable that 2,000 individuals in Massachusetts die from this preventable disease each year," Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel said. "We will continue to use our data-driven approach to focus on high-risk, high-need priority populations and disparities to achieve our goal of reducing opioid overdoses and deaths."

Massachusetts has doubled spending on fighting the opioid crisis and added more than 1,200 treatment beds.

To receive help for a substance use disorder, visit www.helplinema.org or call the Massachusetts Substance Use Helpline at 800-327-5050.

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