U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin, said Tuesday that he helped secure $2 million in federal public health funding for Austin to fight opioid overdoses, with a focus on preventing death from fentanyl.
According to Doggett, this is the first long-term federal funding to combat opioid abuse at the local level.
“It’s clear from the deaths we’ve seen among high school students in neighboring counties that this is an issue that affects a wide section of our community,” Doggett said. “Basically we’re trying to get everyone on deck – city, county, federal agencies – to work together to find some answers.”
Doggett said he was pursuing the $2 million because it was Austin Public Health’s top priority. It is expected that the money will last for two years.
“We are in a public health crisis … the City of Austin is committed to ensuring that our residents have the information they need to protect against this public health threat,” Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said. “This infusion of federal money will allow us to educate our community about the risk of opioids and overdoses.”
How the money will be spent
In general, funds will be directed to:
- Overdose prevention education.
- Peer-to-peer trainers for street-level intervention. These are people with a lifetime of addiction.
- Additional drugs for opioid withdrawal, including Narcan and its generic version, naloxone.
- Training on how to use naloxone and signs of opioid use.
- The Austin Public Health Hotline can be called for information.
- Educate healthcare professionals on how to avoid prescription addiction.
“The idea is to get more community attention and people’s awareness to help us address this critical issue,” Doggett said.
Travis County says it spent $500,000 on opioid overdose prevention efforts. Austin Public Health has spent about $2 million on all overdose prevention efforts.
Federal money of $2 million has yet to reach Austin.
Austin Public Health will develop a plan for how to use the money and seek support from the community organizations it currently works with. Many of these programs will see an increase in funding.
“We hope to be able to use the good work of this funding and other good work being done in the community to open up other grant opportunities for us,” Austin Public Health Director Adrienne Sturrup said.
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Seeing the growing crisis
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. It is often mixed with other drugs so that the person is unaware that the drug they are taking contains fentanyl.
In the first six months of 2022, there were 199 accidental overdose deaths in Travis County, including 118 from fentanyl overdose. Overdose is the leading cause of fatal accidents in the county. Accidental overdose deaths in the first six months of 2022 were the same as all of 2021, but fentanyl accounted for only 36% of those deaths in 2021; now this figure is 59%.
“These deaths are preventable,” said Travis County Judge Andy Brown. “These are the people who live here in Travis County. Our brothers are dying, our mothers, our best friends, our colleagues, our neighbors.”
Brown said the number of women dying from fentanyl overdoses has risen 150% in Travis County, the number of blacks killed by fentanyl has risen nearly 180%, and the number of Hispanics who have died from it has risen 155%.
Overdoses are happening across the county, not just in one area, said Dr. Desmar Walks of the Austin-Travis County Health Authority.
“We desperately need a community-wide solution to this problem,” Walks said. “One pill can kill, no matter your age or gender. It is imperative that you only take your pills as directed by your doctor… the first pill you take from a stranger can kill you.”
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What is the expected impact of the new funding?
According to Sturrup, the first result people will see is an increase in the level of education in the community. Austin Public Health will educate local healthcare professionals about opioid addiction. Opioid use will become part of the conversation when they go out into the community to talk about diabetes, COVID-19, or other health issues.
“We want treatment to be accessible and accessible to everyone who finds themselves in this situation,” Sturrup said.
Narcan treatment neutralizes the effect of the nasal spray or injection.
“It’s like having a fire extinguisher in your house that you never want or intend to use, but it saves lives,” Brown said.
The Texas Harm Reduction Alliance, which has a partnership with the county, was able to supply some of the drug available locally. Kate Graziani, co-director of the Texas Harm Reduction Alliance, estimated that in Austin, the alliance was able to save between 500 and 700 lives a year by making narcan available.
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Narcan is now available in two free vending machines, as well as in bars and public libraries.
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Demanding more from the state government
Brown said he would like the state government to play a bigger role in efforts to expand treatment and education. There are millions of dollars that could be used to fund naloxone for cities, counties and community organizations, he says. Most of the $500,000 the county gave for fentanyl overdose prevention was spent on naloxone, Brown said.
“You saw it was city, county and federal,” Doggett said. “There is no one here from the state. We want this state partnership.”
The state often transfers through federal funds to various entities. The state ran out of federally funded naloxone last year, Doggett said.
At the state level, several bills have been introduced to decriminalize possession of fentanyl test strips to detect the presence of fentanyl in a pill, as well as the Good Samaritan Act for people who help people who have had an overdose without being charged for it. drug paraphernalia.
“Drug addiction or recreational drug use should not be a death sentence,” Brown said. “This investment will help us save lives.”
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