Early data show 7.9% fall in overdose deaths in Ky. in 2023 was much more than national drop, but number of ODs remained high

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention graph; to enlarge, click on it; to download, right-click.

By Melissa Patrick

Kentucky Health News

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's latest provisional overdose-death data say drug-overdose deaths in Kentucky fell by 7.9 percent in 2023, more than the national decline of 3%. 

Morgan Hall, communications director for the state Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, cautioned that the CDC's numbers are predictions and are subject to change and said the state Office of Drug Control Policy will release official numbers in a couple of weeks. 

Gov. Andy Beshear said in an email provided by the cabinet, "By working together, Kentucky is making great progress in leading those with addiction to recovery. We will release the 2023 report in the next coming weeks and will not stop fighting until every life is saved." 

Predicted provisional counts represent estimates of the number of deaths, with adjustments for incomplete reporting that always occurs. 

Despite the decline in overdose deaths, the numbers remain high. 

In Kentucky, the provisional report shows that 2,125 people died from a drug overdose in 2023, down from 2,309 in 2022. Nationally, 107,543 people died from a drug overdose in 2023, down from 111,029 in 2022. 

During this same period, all but one of the seven states adjoining Kentucky saw varying declines in overdose deaths. West Virginia saw a 1.3% increase, to 1,441 overdose deaths in 2023.  

CDC graphic shows ODs by drug class; click on it for a larger version or right-click to download

Several states saw drug-overdose fatality declines of 15% or more, including Kansas (16%), Indiana (17.9%), Maine (15.9%) and Nebraska (24.7%), according to the CDC report.  

And 16 states saw increases in drug overdose deaths, with the highest increases in Alaska (44.1%), Oregon (30%), Nevada (28.9%) and Washington (27.6%).

Like the rest of the nation, most of Kentucky's 2023 overdose fatalities were linked to fentanyl and other opioids. This was followed by psychostimulants (including methamphetamine), cocaine, and natural and semi-synthetic opioids (including, methadone, oxycodone or hydrocodone). 

Kentuckians who are struggling with drug abuse or who are concerned about a family member's substance use can search for treatment providers at www.findhelpnowky.org or contact the KY HELP Statewide Call Center at 1-8338-KY-HELP (1-833-859-4357).

DEA declared National Fentanyl Awareness Day; now is 'the most dangerous time in history to use drugs,' ARC executive says

dea.gov photo

By Melissa Patrick

Kentucky Health News

In response to increase in overdose deaths caused by fentanyl, a highly addictive synthetic opioid, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration declared Tuesday, May 10 National Fentanyl Awareness Day. The goal is saving lives by increasing awareness of, and decreasing the demand for, the powerful drug.

"The advent of fentanyl's integration into street-level use has dramatically changed the landscape of addiction, making this the most dangerous time in history to use drugs," Pat Fogarty, Addiction Recovery Care senior vice president of operations, said in a news release. "Nearly all illicit drugs are potentially contaminated with fentanyl, making any kind of drug use potentially deadly."

Fentanyl is about 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine. Drug traffickers often mix it with other illicit drugs to drive addiction and create repeat customers.

"Many people who are overdosing and dying don’t even know that they are taking fentanyl," says a DEA news release. 

Nationally, the news release says nearly 107,000 people died from a drug-overdose death in the 12-month period ending November 2021. Synthetic opioids, including fentanyls, are involved in 66% of all overdose deaths. 

Kentucky recorded 1,964 overdose deaths in 2020, the highest number recorded to date and a 49% increase from the year before, according to the state's latest annual report. 

Fentanyl-related overdose deaths are also on the rise among teens. A recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that between 2019 and 2020, overdose deaths increased by 94.03% among teens aged 14-18, increasing from 492 overdose deaths in 2019 to 954 in 2020. From 2020 to 2021, they increased by 20.05%, increasing to 1,146 overdose deaths. In 2021, fentanyls were identified in 77.14% of adolescent overdose deaths. 

The researchers conclude that "increasing adolescent overdose deaths, in the context of increasing availability of illicit fentanyls, highlight the need for accurate harm-reduction education for adolescents and greater access to naloxone and services for mental health and substance use behaviors." 

The ARC news release says overdose deaths among teens "are projected to more than double in two years." 

In 2020, the state recorded 127 overdose deaths among Kentuckians between the ages of 15 and 24.

"Fentanyl overdose deaths are not only the result of individuals using a contaminated supply, but many have also adopted fentanyl as their drug of choice," added Fogarty. “For those who are struggling, treatment is available at Addiction Recovery Care, and recovery is possible.”

People who are struggling with drug abuse or who are concerned about a family member's substance use can also search for treatment providers at www.findhelpnowky.org. The KY Help Call Center (1-833-859-4357) also provides information on treatment options an open slots among treatment providers. The Kentucky State Police has also launched the Angel Initiative, which allows anyone with a substance-use disorder seeking treatment to visit a KSP post where they are directed to treatment.

Legislature will again tackle challenge of synthetic drugs

The Kentucky General Assembly will "intensify efforts against synthetic drugs that can slip into communities via the Internet, wreaking sudden havoc," Mike Wynn reports for The Courier-Journal. "The legislature has enacted at least four bills targeting synthetics since 2010 and is seeking to amp up penalties for traffickers next year following an outbreak in Lewis County of the toxic synthetic drug called flakka'."

“They are no less dangerous than anything else out there, and in many cases, more dangerous,” Van Ingram, head of the state Office of Drug Control Policy, told Wynn. “It seems to pop up in a certain community and makes a run for a short time. Then it fizzles out there and shows up somewhere else.”

Wynn explains, "Synthetic drugs are chemically engineered to mimic the effects of other controlled substances, ranging from marijuana to methamphetamine. Some products are smoked and others injected, and experts warn that the drugs can produce severe and unexpected side-effects." Legislators have tried to deal with the issue, but "Drug chemists continued to modify their formulas to circumvent the law," Wynn notes.

One proposal would raise the penalty for the first offense of trafficking in synthetics from a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail, to a Class D felony, punishable by one to five years in prison. "House Majority Leader Rocky Adkins, D-Sandy Hook, said the measure offers bipartisan appeal and already has backing from community groups, law enforcement and prosecutors," Wynn reports. "He said the outlook for passing legislation is good."

Bath salts, synthetic drugs change too fast for foes to fight

Bath salts, which mimic the effects of drugs like cocaine
and speed. The Patriot-News photo by Chris Knight.

Though legislators across the country, including Kentucky, have passed laws to ban synthetic drugs like bath salts, there are so many new formulations of the substances the states can't keep up.

Experts estimate there are more than 100 types of bath-salt chemicals. "The moment you start to regulate one of them, they'll come out with a variant that sometimes is even more potent," said Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

The drugs, which mimic the effects of drugs like cocaine and amphetamines, are usually sold at small stores "in misleading packaging that suggests common household items like bath salts, incense and plant food," Matthew Perrone reports for The Associated Press. "But the substances inside are powerful, mind-altering drugs that have been linked to bizarre and violent behavior across the country." The products are sold under brand names like "Ivory Wave," "Vanilla Sky" and "Bliss." The American Association of Poison Control got more than 6,100 calls about the drugs in 2011 — up from 304 in 2010 — and 1,700 calls so far this year.

The sticky wicket in controlling the surge of formulations stems from the fact that "U.S. laws prohibit the sale or possession of all substances that mimic illegal drugs, but only if federal prosecutors can show that they are intended for human use," Perrone reports. On almost every packet of these drugs, there is a warning that says they are not fit for human consumption. Be that as it may, "everyone knows these are drugs to get high, including the sellers," said Barbara Carreno, a spokeswoman for the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Kentucky banned bath salts in 2011. In May 2012 Gov. Steve Beshear signed a mandate that "closes legal loopholes by banning classes, not just compounds, of synthetic drugs," reports Jeffery Smith for WFIE-TV in Evansville, Ind. The 2011 law "extends seizure and forfeiture laws to retailers who sell the items, makes sales a felony for a second or subsequent offense, and makes simple possession a misdemeanor," Smith reports.

Still, those fighting on the front lines of the problem said it's difficult to curb. "The problem is these drugs are changing and I'm sure they're going to find some that are a little bit different chemically so they don't fall under the law," said Dr. Sullivan Smith of Cookeville Regional Medical Center in Tennessee. "Is it adequate to name five or 10 or even 20? The answer is no, they're changing too fast." (Read more)

House Judiciary Committee approves two bills to curb synthetic, Rx drug abuse

Cracking down on drugs is one of the most pressing topics of the 2012 General Assembly, and lawmakers showed they were serious about it this afternoon. (Associated Press photo by Ed Reinke of House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. John Tilley, D-Hopkinsville)

In an effort to get a handle on prescription drug abuse — and so-called pill mills that supply the addictive medications — the House Judiciary Committee approved a bill that will place controls on pain management clinics, reports Jack Brammer of the Lexington Herald-Leader. House Bill 4 also puts the power to police the problem into the hands of the attorney general; cracks down on prescribers who have had trouble with the law for drug-related crime; requires that the clinics be owned by people who have a medical background; and will get a detailed look at how many deaths are occurring by having coroners report any death caused from the use of drugs or drug overdoses.

"We don't really know how bad (the problem) is," said House Speaker Greg Stumbo, the Prestonsburg Democrat who filed the bill. "I think it will astound us when we get the results in because I think it might double what we think the numbers are."

The committee also approved House Bill 482, which prohibits trafficking and possession of synthetic drugs that are sold as bath salts or incense in convenience stores and other places. The measure, sponsored by committee chairman John Tilley, D-Hopkinsville, was passed unanimously.

Both bills will now go to the full House for consideration. (Read more)

Sen. Rand Paul puts holds on federal synthetic drug bans

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, left, has put a hold on several Senate bills aimed at banning chemicals used in synthetic drugs because he feels "enforcement of most drug laws can and should be local and state issues," said his spokeswoman Moira Bagley. The move has been criticized by other lawmakers, law enforcement and a woman from his home city whose daughter had a bad reaction to synthetic marijuana. (Photo by Matt Goins)

"When Ashley Stillwell, 19, bowed to peer pressure last August and smoked a substance called 7H, it quickly immobilized her," reports Bill Estep for the Lexington Herald-Leader. "Ashley's frightened friends poured water on her and shook her. When they couldn't rouse her, Ashley heard the others discuss dumping her body in the Barren River."

The teen recovered after she was taken to the hospital, but her mother Amy, of Bowling Green, is frustrated by Paul's move to block the legislation. Three Senate measures passed committee last summer, and the House voted 371-98 in December to approve a ban on synthetic drug chemicals. Senate rules allow one member to place a hold on a bill. "That doesn't mean it can't be voted on, but it slows the process and raises some hurdles," Estep reports.

Bagley said Paul is concerned about banning the substances before research can be done on them. Sen. Charles Grassley, an Iowan Republican who sponsored one of the bills, said reclassifying the chemicals as controlled substances would not prevent research from being conducted. "We cannot let the will of just one senator obstruct the will of many," Grassley said.

One in nine high-school seniors had used a substance known as K2 or Spice in the past year, the National Institute on Drug Abuse reported in December. That makes synthetic marijuana the second most-abused drug in that age group. Calls to poison-control centers about synthetic drugs have risen from 3,200 in 2010 to 13,000 last year, Estep reports.

White House drug chief Gil Kerlikowske said his office is "urging the Senate to pass that legislation." (Read more)