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Letters: More work needed in combating drug overdoses

ISSUE | DRUG ABUSE More work needed in combating overdoses Montgomery County, like the rest of the country, has seen a tragic and significant increase in overdoses and deaths due to heroin, opioids, and fentanyl. Prevention, intervention, and law enforcement must be part of any effort to tackle this epidemic. The

ISSUE | DRUG ABUSE

More work needed

in combating overdoses

Montgomery County, like the rest of the country, has seen a tragic and significant increase in overdoses and deaths due to heroin, opioids, and fentanyl. Prevention, intervention, and law enforcement must be part of any effort to tackle this epidemic. The county had been addressing each area individually, but we now have a coordinated partnership with county officials, the District Attorney's Office, law enforcement, Health and Human Services, and first responders to implement a comprehensive program to address this crisis.

Key to the program is providing police, emergency medical services, and pharmacies with the overdose reversal drug naloxone. Thirty-three of 49 police departments in the county are equipped with naloxone, but we are striving for

100 percent. In addition, the county issued a standing order last year allowing participating pharmacies to dispense naloxone to those at risk for overdose, thereby expanding the safety net.

More needs to be done so people can survive overdoses and get treatment. Naloxone needs to be available in colleges, universities, and schools. The state needs to expand liability protection to school nurses and others who might administer naloxone.

Through these efforts, we can break the hold these drugs have on our community.

|Valerie A. Arkoosh, vice chair, Montgomery County Board of Commissioners, and Kevin R. Steele, county district attorney, Norristown