COLUMBUS – Drug overdose deaths in Franklin County during the first four months of the year were 66 percent higher than at the same point in 2016, primarily due to opiate-related overdoses, according to the Franklin County Coroner’s Office.
Dr. Anahi Ortiz announced Tuesday that 173 people had died from Jan. 1 through April 30, compared with 104 at the same time on 2016.
Ortiz warns that, if the trend continues, drug overdoses will claim 500 lives this year, up from 353 last year.
Ortiz says 78 percent of the fatal overdoses can be attributed to fentanyl or similar drugs.
Local officials are planning to unveil on Wednesday the Franklin County Opiate Action Plan.
The plan calls for the creation of a committee of and details plans for specific actions for drug abuse prevention, reducing the number of overdoses, expanding treatment options and improving community safety.
The Alcohol Drug and Mental Health Board of Franklin County will implement the plan at the direction of the Franklin County Board of Commissioners and Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther.
Meanwhile, in Washington, Republican efforts to roll back former President Barack Obama’s health care law are on a collision course with the national opioid epidemic.
The issue is Medicaid, expanded under Obama. Data show that Medicaid expansion is paying for a large share of treatment costs in states hard hit by the addiction crisis. This has led Republican senators to consider a longer phase-out of the Medicaid expansion.
The House version of the health care bill would phase out expanded Medicaid, which allows states to provide federally backed insurance to low-income adults previously not eligible, including many in their 20s and 30s who are and dealing with opioid addiction.
According to data compiled by The Associated Press, Medicaid expansion accounted for 61 percent of total Medicaid spending on substance abuse treatment in Kentucky, 47 percent in West Virginia, 56 percent in Michigan, and 59 percent in Maryland.
Research by Your Voice Ohio/Ohio Media Project indicates that Ohio was among four states with the highest overdose death rates between 2014 and 2015.