CLEVELAND — The number of drug overdose deaths in Cuyahoga County is approaching record numbers for the end of the year. On Tuesday, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office told 3News they're projecting 722 deaths by the end of 2023, which is just five less than the record in 2017 when 727 people died.
"This is a bad year, and I mean, we've had bad years since 2016 when we had fentanyl really start to become a major player," said Dr. Thomas Gilson, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner.
Gilson and his team showed us a chart that shows that about 65% of their projected overdose deaths for this year would be due to fentanyl.
In 2015, there were 370 overdose deaths in the county, but in 2016 the number jumped to 673, and the number has not dipped below 550 since.
“This is a problem that is of paramount importance to public health and public safety," Gilson said. "That's the equivalent of about four jets crashing into Lake Erie every year. If we saw that we'd say, well we better build better jets. This is a problem that really is worth our best effort. I would love to see it fixed. I certainly think like many people in Northeast Ohio, I have had close friends, family members lost to this crisis. And there's nothing I think is more tragic than just seeing somebody who is passing away before their time because of drugs. It feels like it's preventable, but we don't have the best approach yet.”
They attribute the big spike in overdose deaths in recent years to fentanyl, which is taken by itself, but is also mixed with cocaine or heroine, the user often unaware that their drugs are laced with it.
Gilson's office has ruled 440 confirmed overdosed deaths in Cuyahoga County so far this year. According to the chart we were provided (seen below), the county is on track to have its second highest year of drug overdose deaths on record.
They are pushing hard for opioid users to always have the emergency treatment naloxone on them to reverse the overdose, but emphasize that it won't do any good though if someone is using drugs by themselves.
"There’s lots of places you can get that antidote for free, but we also have to bear in mind that if a lot of people are using drugs by themselves, it defeats the purpose of that because they can’t give it to themselves when they’re in trouble," Gilson explained. "So, if there’s one message that I stress today, I would say listen - if you’re going to use a drug, you should have somebody else present in case you get into trouble who can give you that naloxone and/or call 911 to get you help."
Dr. Gilson also pointed out to me that there are local facilities offering free test strips to test street drugs for fentanyl. That includes Circle Health Services, part of The Centers.
He's also a massive advocate for treatment.
For those struggling or wanting to be connected to services, the Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) Board of Cuyahoga County has a 24-hour crisis hotline at 216-623-6888.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) hotline can be reached at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
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