YPSILANTI, Mich. – Washtenaw County Health Department officials said that opioid overdose deaths among county residents increased by 28% between 2020 and 2021.
The trend is consistent with a national rise in opioid-related fatalities since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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“Opioid-related deaths in Washtenaw decreased 26% between 2018 and 2019,” Washtenaw County Health Department epidemiologist Shannon Phillips said in a statement. “While these rates remained stable during the first year of the pandemic, we are unfortunately seeing a rise in our community’s opioid-related deaths since 2021.”
Of the opioid overdose deaths that occurred from January 2021 to May 2022 in Washtenaw County, 82% involved fentanyl, a synthetic opioid with a potency that can be 50 to 100 times stronger than heroin. The majority of local opioid-related fatalities also involved other substances, with just over half involving stimulants cocaine and methamphetamine.
An emerging drug in local overdose deaths is Xylazine, a non-opioid tranquilizer not approved for human use. According to the Health Department, it is commonly added to illicit fentanyl and other opioids.
“Most opioid-related deaths involve fentanyl, additional substances, or other drugs added to illicit opioids,” Washtenaw County Health Department health officer Jimena Loveluck said in a release. “People may unknowingly ingest fatal doses of fentanyl or other substances, which can seriously increase the risk of a life-threatening overdose. It’s incredibly important to use extreme caution: never use alone and have naloxone on hand.”
Naloxone, also known as Narcan, is a lifesaving substance that counteracts the effects of opioids during an overdose. It is administered as a nose spray to the individual experiencing an overdose.
For a list of locations where you can pick up a free Narcan kit in Washtenaw County, click here.
Read: Free Narcan now available at Ann Arbor District Library
“Most residents who died of an opioid overdose were White (81%), male (71%), and between 25-44 years old (60%),” reads a Health Department release. “There were a disproportionate number of Black/African American residents who died from an opioid overdose (19%), compared to the county level population of Black/African American residents (12%).”
For more information, see WCHD’s September 2022 Opioid Report.
For information on where to dispose of medication and to read local recovery stories, visit www.washtenaw.org/ItIsPossible.