FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — In its life-and-death battle against the drug epidemic, Kentucky has made gains in “breaking down the stigma” to reach out for treatment, Gov. Andy Beshear said Thursday while releasing statistics showing the state's overdose fatalities declined but remain staggeringly high.
Kentucky had 2,135 overdose deaths in 2022, down more than 5% from the prior year and the first statewide decline since 2018.
There are “far too many Kentuckians that we’re losing,” Beshear said, but the report also offers "a real ray of hope that everyone, doing their best every single day, can make a difference.”
The overdose fatality report names addiction as “one of the most critical public health and safety issues” facing Kentucky. The increased prevalence of fentanyl — a powerful synthetic opioid — is blamed by officials as a key factor behind the high death toll in the Bluegrass State. Potent, inexpensive methamphetamine is seen as another significant contributor.
Drug overdose deaths in the U.S. went up slightly last year after big leaps — which Kentucky also experienced — during the coronavirus pandemic. Kentucky was among eight states that reported sizable overdose death decreases last year of about 100 or more compared with the previous calendar year.
Beshear credited people on the front lines in fighting the addition epidemic, including law enforcement, medical first responders, and treatment and recovery personnel.
The Democratic governor pointed to a 50% increase in the number of drug treatment beds in Kentucky since he became governor in late 2019 — part of bipartisan efforts to bolster drug prevention and intervention efforts. Those efforts are making an impact, he said at his weekly news conference.
“I think it takes a lot of bravery for someone to come forward and say they need help," Beshear said. "But I think we’re breaking down the stigma and more people are reaching out than ever before.
“And we now have a bed for anybody,” he added. "Regardless of cost or the rest, we can find an option that works. All you’ve got to do is look for help, ask for help and we can get you that help.”
Van Ingram, executive director of the state Office of Drug Control Policy, stressed that there's “so much more work to be done” in combating the drug epidemic.
Another front line official stressed the importance of providing employment and educational opportunities for people in recovery, and for workplaces to offer recovery-supportive policies.
“I think that we’re in the right direction and we need to stay the course and continue to expand,” said Tara Moseley Hyde, CEO of People Advocating Recovery, a group working to eliminate barriers to recovery from substance use disorder.
On the interdiction front, the governor said last month that Kentucky's Counterdrug Program had seized 142 pounds (64 kilograms) of fentanyl over seven months. Beshear also points to the deployment of hundreds of Kentucky National Guard soldiers to the nation’s southwest border during his term as governor. Border security problems are frequently blamed for illegal drugs flowing into the United States.
Addiction woes loom as a potent issue in Kentucky's hotly contested campaign for governor this year. Republicans say the state’s drug epidemic worsened during the Democratic governor's tenure. Beshear is seeking reelection to a second term and is being challenged by Republican Daniel Cameron, the state's attorney general, in the November general election.
Cameron points to his role combating the opioid crisis. As part of national settlements, Cameron has secured more than $900 million in settlement funds from pharmacies, distributors, wholesalers and manufacturers of opioids for their role in fueling the epidemic, according to his office.
“I have repeatedly called the drug epidemic the public health challenge of our lifetime — and I mean it,” Cameron said in a release this week. “While nothing can bring back the lives and livelihoods lost to the opioid epidemic, I hope these settlements will give Kentuckians some relief and help prevent a crisis like this from ever happening again.”
Beshear says he has fought back against the state’s drug addiction problems since his term as attorney general, which preceded Cameron’s term. While in that position, Beshear filed numerous lawsuits against opioid manufacturers and distributors. Beshear said Thursday that he's continued the fight as governor.
Overdose deaths are tracked by the Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center using data from the death certificates database at the Office of Vital Statistics, the governor's office said in a release.
