Heroin continues to take lives in Monroe County – News – Monroe News – Monroe, Michigan

According to statistics released by the Monroe County Health Department, 47 people died from drug overdoses in 2018, two more than the year before.

The number of deaths in Monroe County linked to drugs and heroin in 2018 is similar to figures from the previous year, but some involved in the fight remain optimistic that change is happening.

According to statistics released by the Monroe County Health Department, 47 people died from drug overdoses in 2018, two more than the year before. Of those 47 deaths, 34 were the result of heroin and fentanyl overdoses.

“I am saddened to see the numbers have not decreased,” said Michael A. Weipert, chief judge of the 38th Circuit Court, who has voiced his disdain for drug dealing many times in court. “The loss of one life to drug addiction is one too many.”

The heroin epidemic that has infiltrated Monroe County and the nation for the past decade began largely with many becoming addicted to narcotic painkillers. Opioids, such as Oxycontin and heroin, continue to produce high numbers of deaths, despite efforts to educate, treat and prosecute. But those involved in the fight say it still will take time before real changes are evident.

“I’d love to see the numbers go down,” said Kim Comerzan, director of the health department. “ But we still see it as a public health issue. It might take a while before we see the effects.”

For years, many in the community stated a treatment facility was needed in Monroe County. Now one is available. A 12-bed engagement center open 24 hours a day, seven days a week next the ProMedica Monroe Regional Hospital on N. Macomb St. is operated by Catholic Charities and offers addicts an option for recovery.

Monroe resident George Barath, who lost his son, Ryan, to a heroin overdose about six years ago, has helped about 85 local addicts seek professional help through his program, Ryan’s Hope. Barath said although the number of deaths remains high, he is confident better days are ahead.

“We have help out there,” Barath said. “There is a place to go.”

Yet the problem clearly still exists. Dr. Carl J. Schmidt, medical director with the county health department, said overdose deaths in recent years rose because of the introduction of fentanyl, an opioid 80 to 100 times more powerful than morphine that is mixed with heroin to make it more potent.

The presence of fentanyl in victims of overdose deaths in Monroe County has steadily risen over the past several years.

“Fentanyl is in the drug supply, which increases the lethality of an individual street opiate dose,” Schmidt said. He added that another roadblock to recovery is the stigma that remains associated with heroin addiction.

“I think the drug problem has socioeconomic and cultural roots which no one knows what to do about and, if they do, are not easy to tackle with the usual political and legal tools,” Schmidt said.

“There’s also the social stigma associated with drug use even though these are people just like you and me, but they still need help,” he said.

Another statistic in 2018 showed that those who are dying of drug overdoses are getting older. The average age was 41.7, which was slightly higher than 2017’s 39.9. Schmidt was not surprised.

“It’s always been that way,” he said. “Today it’s common to find people in their 60s and 70s using heroin and cocaine.”

Schmidt said older people using illegal drugs will take a dose of nitroglycerin, which relieves chest pain, before they snort cocaine or smoke crack.

While the numbers of deaths remain high and stagnant, those fighting the war remain optimistic. Weipert said education and treatment remain keys in the battle against heroin and opioids. He said the courts and probation departments are committed to those concepts.

“We try to exhaust all treatment options before any lengthy incarceration is imposed,” he said. “We are working toward additional treatment options and alternatives.”

Comerzan agreed, saying that efforts are and have been underway to combat the problem.

“We have to change the culture,” she said. “We’ll continue to fight the fight.”

Together, community members said, they vowed to always keep trying because lives are at stake.

“Monroe has come a long way,” Barath said. “There is hope for Monroe.”