Battling the Opioid Addiction Crisis in Minnesota
March 1 was Opioid Awareness Day at the Capitol – one of the most important awareness events we hold each year. Opioid Awareness Day provides an opportunity for activists, legislators, and stakeholders to gather at the capitol in St. Paul to draw attention to one of the most critical issues facing our communities and our families.
Up until a couple years ago, doctors routinely prescribed opioids to combat chronic pain. Make no mistake, there are legitimate benefits to the drug. However, they also have severe addictive potential; chemically, they are virtually identical to heroin, and the impacts on families and communities are just as devastating.
The crisis has created additional pressures on Minnesota’s child protection system. Drug abuse is now the number one reason children are being removed from their homes; the number of children taken from drug addicted parents has doubled since 2012.
The crisis of opioid addiction has reached epidemic proportions. President Trump declared it a public health emergency and gave it a prominent position in his State of the Union speech. And across the country, volunteers and interest groups are mobilizing to get the situation under control and save lives.
On the surface, the numbers are discouraging. In 2016, 395 Minnesotans died from opioid overdoses – an 18% increase from 2015. Overdose deaths here are up 600% since 2000. During the first three quarters of 2016, there were 2,074 nonfatal opioid overdoses, and more than 1,100 emergency room visits were opioid-related.
But there is reason for hope. Opioid addiction is finally at the forefront of our public conversation in a way that it has not been before. According to the Minnesota Department of Health’s Opioid Dashboard, prescribing practices and supply, diversion, and harm reduction efforts all improved last year.
Not only are more people recognizing the urgency of the situation, they are also taking action. Groundbreaking pilot programs that focus on strong community involvement are showing real, sustained success at reducing opioid abuse.
As the chief author of the Opioid Stewardship bill, I have been working in a bipartisan manner with Sen. Chris Eaton and Rep. Dave Baker, who have experienced firsthand the impact of opioid addiction. Both have lost a child to an overdose. The Opioid Stewardship Bill would create a funding mechanism to support prevention, treatment, and community support in their recover. Also, the children of opioid addicted families are the true victims – support would be given to the counties for the costs incurred to keep these children safe.
Sen. Eaton and Rep. Baker’s stories, while tragic, have helped drive badly-needed attention to our cause. The responses have been encouraging. Last fall, Minnesota officials announced nearly $17 million in federal grant money would be used to fight opioid abuse. In the days before the 2018 legislative session began, all four legislative leaders and Gov. Dayton signaled their support for a comprehensive opioid bill this year.
Opioid addiction affects families in every corner of the state, of all races and income levels. Virtually all of us knows somebody who has a personal story to tell of a life taken away because of the drug. It needs to end. There is still a lot of work to do, but I know we are on the right path. Momentum is building for a strong, bipartisan solution that tells Minnesota families we are taking opioids seriously.