Dr. Nabarun Dasgupta: Overdose deaths in the United States are on the decline. The counties and communities that are doing a good job at reducing their overdose deaths are using harm reduction principles.
They’re doing treatment first. They’re lowering barriers to getting help. The expansion of naloxone distribution at the community level has exploded and is very likely one of the key drivers of why overdose deaths are declining. Medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) like methadone and buprenorphine cut overdose risk by half.
Just as the drug supply is different from place to place in this country, so is the quality of drug treatment. There are large parts of this country that don’t have low barrier, affordable care for people. When they’re ready to make that step, harm reduction helps because it keeps people alive until they’re ready to make that positive change in their lives.
If we want overdose deaths to continue to decline in the United States, we need to keep doing the things that we know work. There are people alive right now because of these effective, proven strategies for preventing overdoses.
About Dr. Nabarun Dasgupta: Dr. Dasgupta is a senior scientist at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. He has studied drug overdose deaths for over 20 years.
Notifications