Quincy News: Could the opioid epidemic finally be easing?

<![CDATA[

The needle and the damage done
A Boston Globe image
– News and commentary about Quincy and elsewhere from Quincy Quarry News.

Could the opioid epidemic finally be easing?

The number of deaths tallied in Massachusetts during the first three months of 2017 show a slight decline.

“The needles and the damage done”
Lyrics by Neil Young and a genius,com image
Similarly, opioid overdose deaths in the Commonwealth during 2016 declined by almost 10% from those in 2015.

The number of overdose deaths in Quincy in 2016, however, was essentially unchanged within the statistical margin of error from the previous year.

Even more troubling, the number of fatalities could be revised upwards.

The reason why fatalities numbers could end up higher is that state medical examiners are still in the process of reviewing deaths for their causes and thus such may increase local overdose totals as toxicology reports are completed and then reviewed.

Further disconcerting is how the apparently most recent available overdose statistics based on overdose fatalities per hundred thousand residents show Quincy is second only to Lynn among the cities and larger towns in the Commonwealth.

A Faxon Ambulance Services vehicle
A Quincy Quarry News file photo
While – admittedly – some larger communities had sizeable increases in their overdose fatalities in 2016 from the year before, it is still disconcerting that Quincy overdose deaths have not abated since local ambulance service was doubled on July first of 2015 and so enhanced local first responder capabilities.

Similarly, Quincy firefighters have somewhat recently both started carrying and administering Narcan to those who have overdosed and so providing further support to Quincy police officers who have since 2010 carried and administered Narcan to those who have overdosed.

Even so, the local battle against opiates has only at best been fought to a draw.