Connecticut’s opioid overdose epidemic may be stabilizing. That’s according to emergency room data released on Wednesday by the state Department of Public Health.
The state keeps track of when and where suspected drug overdoses lead to emergency room visits and releases them every three months. The number actually dropped slightly, from about 1,300 in the third quarter of 2018 to 1,200 in the fourth.
“So that’s positive news. It looks like it’s starting to stabilize, maybe even decrease in some areas,” said Susan Logan, an epidemiologist with the department.
“There’s been a number of initiatives that have been going on across the state with regard to provider awareness, reducing the number of prescriptions, as well as getting access to naloxone, which is a lifesaving medication that reverses overdose…But it’s really too soon to tell that it’s a trend. We would need more quarters of data to tell if this continues to decline or stabilize.”
Connecticut’s opioid overdose rate is still about 1.7 percent higher than the national average.
