Bartow’s Crisis

Statistics

• #1 in June, #2 in May & January 2019, #3 in February & March 2019, #4 in April  for drug overdose ER (DPH) visits, and #2 overall in 2017.
• 2010-2015 more than 100 people died from fatal overdoses.
• In the 5 year period from 2013-2017: (DPH)
  • #1 for accidental overdose deaths ages 25-44, and #2 for all ages
  • #2 in suicides ages 20-44, #3 ages 15-19 and all ages
• In a recent Bartow County Public Health resident survey:
• 58% indicated alcohol/drug abuse as our county’s most important health problem, with mental health issues at 38% in second place, often co-occurring with addiction.
• When asked what they thought the 3 most important “risk behaviors” were, 72% reported drug abuse, 41% alcohol abuse, and 39% overweight.
• 120 children [of the 150] were removed from their homes for drug-related issues and into DFCS custody in 2018.
• 100% of our unsheltered homeless population are suffering with drug addiction and/or co-occurring mental health disorders.
• In a recent June town hall, State Senator Bruce Thompson discussed the unparalleled number of employers who cannot find enough people who can pass a drug screen to fill their workforce.
• In a June Forum Rosemary Greene, District Attorney for the Cherokee Judicial Circuit Court, stated “Approximately 85% – 90% of all crime in Bartow County is drug-related; whether theft, domestic violence, or sexual offences. It’s a huge problem that covers everything we do.”
• The State recognizes, statistics verify, and the community knows we have a serious problem that needs to be addressed.
• Today’s opioid crisis killed over 70,000 Americans in 2017. To put that in perspective, that’s a higher death toll than guns, car crashes, and HIV/AIDS (48,371 in 1995) ever killed in one year in the U.S., and a higher death toll than ALL military casualties in the Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq wars combined (65,054).

• Among the 18 wealthiest countries in the world, the United States has had, by far, the highest drug overdose death rate for more than a decade. This has contributed in large part to the life expectancy in the U.S. dropping for the second year in a row to 78.6, the first recorded multi-year drop since 1962 and 1963 when influenza caused a spike in deaths.

• Other drugs can also be involved. Roughly half of the heroin-related deaths involved alcohol, and 31% of prescription painkiller-linked deaths were also linked to benzodiazepines, a legal anti-anxiety drug. In other words, though it began with pain killers, this isn’t just an opioid crisis; it’s a full-on addiction epidemic, involving alcohol and all sorts of legal and illegal drugs.

• As alarming as these statistics are, they understate the magnitude of the crisis. Opioid misuse and addiction can lead to many more life-altering problems than death, including family disintegration, homelessness, incarceration, and other life-threatening health condition

The solution

• Recovery happens in communities where people live.
• Tragically, the casualties of this ill-conceived war on drugs are families. The Georgia Council on Substance Abuse and their Recovery Community Organizations are equipping communities with resources and strategies to mitigate the suffering.