CLINTON COUNTY — Local health officials responded this week to an article regarding fatal overdoses.
The San Francisco Chronicle recently created a database tracking U.S. overdoses with data provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. According to the article, between January and December 2022 there were over 107,000 overdose-related deaths. Of those, 5,141 were in Ohio and 23 were in Clinton County.
According to the article, there was an average 32.3 overdose deaths for every 100,000 people in the U.S. last year. Overall, Clinton County had 54.8, higher than neighboring counties Highland (34.6), Warren (18.0), Greene (22.6), Brown (52.7), and Clermont (23.7). Fayette County had a higher count at 62.4. The highest-rated county was Vinton with 119.4.
Clinton County Health Commissioner Pam Walker-Bauer spoke to the News Journal about this information. Walker-Bauer provided a copy of the Health District’s 2022 Annual Report indicating the three leading causes of deaths in the county were cardiovascular disease (132), cancer-all types (95), and COVID (46). Drug overdose-related deaths were seventh on the list.
“This death date is considered provisional,” said Walker-Bauer. “That’s because there is sometimes still pending data.”
Regarding the San Francisco Chronicle’s piece, Walker-Bauer noted that 2022 is still provisional.
She told the News Journal that according to the Health District’s epidemiologist Dr. Don Brannen, “The rate is misleading in this situation as the numbers for our county are small, compared to the five-year average – they’re statistically identical. Even a small increase in the count will be larger proportionately if only the rate per 100,000 population is used due to our smaller population.”
Dr. Brannen also noted there were four extra deaths above the five-year average. This is largely due to fentanyl with “at least 13 of 20 deaths associated with fentanyl or fentanyl derivatives.”
Walker-Bauer said the Health District provides 129 doses of Naloxone to first responders (mainly fire/EMS) and ProjectDAWN kits.
“This is for broader use by community members including faith-based organizations or individuals that request a kit. This is also supported by state (general revenue fund),” she said regarding the ProjectDAWN kits. “A note about Naloxone kits, the FDA has recently approved it to be sold over-the-counter.”
The Naloxone provided to first responders is funded through the state general revenue fund.
“As we continue to recover and rebuild our staffing capacity and previous program capacity following our COVID emergency response efforts, our Board of Health has approved the addition of a new program, a Grief Recovery Support Group,” she said.
This group was started earlier this month by WIC Director Renee Quallen. The group is for anyone dealing with grief, including those affected by addiction and overdose deaths.
Reach John Hamilton at 937-382-2574
