As the high rate of opioid abuse continues in northwest Ohio, state and federal officials unveiled proposals Monday
they hope stop addiction before it starts.
The day’s three events in Toledo included a visit by directors from the state departments of mental health and addiction services; department of health; medical board, and pharmacy board. They touted a new campaign to reduce prescription opioid abuse.
The “Take Charge Ohio” program educates on the dangers of unsafe use and suggests alternative treatments. A news conference took place at the Mental Health and Recovery Services Board of Lucas County.
This awareness effort is for doctors, patients, and the public to cut the risk of dependence while still managing pain, said Dr. Mark Hurst, medical director at the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services.
It is clear the opioid abuse problem did not occur overnight, but leaders are pushing back, Dr. Hurst said.
“With the support of Ohio’s physician and prescriber community, Ohio’s making promising progress in reducing the number of prescription opioids available for abuse,” Dr. Hurst said.
The www.takechargeohio.org website provides up-to-date information on disposing opioids and seeking help, said Dr. Clint Koenig, medical director of the Ohio Department of Health.
“For patients, Take Charge Ohio offers the opportunity to answer the question, ‘Is this medication right for me?’ and ‘What can I do to help best manage my pain?’ ” Dr. Koenig said.
More information can be found at the website. Funding for the program came as part of a $925,000 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention grant. It also covers media and opioid education prescribing.
Democratic candidate for governor Rich Cordray visited the city as well. Mr. Cordray stopped at the Lucas County Sheriff’s Office for a meeting with its Drug Abuse Response Team.
Opioid abuse is an enormous issue across the state, Mr. Cordray said. This team is a significant intervention they wish to further model, he said.
“It’s an ongoing crisis in the state of Ohio, and it’s impossible to get away from it, no matter where you go,” Mr. Cordray said.
In campaign materials, Mr. Cordray said Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine and Republicans in Columbus have been “asleep at the switch while the opioid epidemic has spread across Ohio.” Mr. Cordray proposes declaring a public health state of emergency, protecting Ohio’s Medicaid expansion, and growing funding for prevention and treatment.
In a statement, Mr. DeWine’s campaign for governor cited Sheriff John Tharp’s work, about $800,000 in grants from Mr. DeWine’s office, and support from the attorney general’s staff in assisting the Drug Abuse Response Team’s growth.
“The fact that Richard Cordray would criticize Mike DeWine at Lucas County Sheriff John Tharp’s office shows just how little Richard Cordray has been paying attention to Ohio and the opioid epidemic” spokesman Ryan Stubenrauch said.
A spokesman for the Dennis Kucinich for governor campaign said they are proposing affordable, accessible health care services, a sensible drug enforcement policy, and legalization of cannabis for pain management.
“‘Declaring a state of emergency’ is a dramatic-sounding but hollow attempt to compensate for the fact that he did nothing as attorney general and, until today, did nothing as a candidate to prove that he’s serious about this problem,” said spokesman Andy Juniewicz.
Also Monday, U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Toledo) at a news conference identified Ohio as a priority state for millions in new federal grant funding for the opioid crisis.
Miss Kaptur said she helped lead a provision in the recently signed Omnibus bill that gives Ohio priority access to state-level grants. It includes $950 million in new opioid response grants for states highly affected by the crisis, including Ohio. An additional $330 million will be available to law enforcement across the country.
Contact Ryan Dunn at: rdunn@theblade.com, 419-724-6095, or on Twitter @RDunnBlade.e
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