ANNAPOLIS, MD (October 20, 2015)– Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen testified Tuesday before the Maryland State Joint Committee on Behavioral Health and Opioid Use Disorders to update the General Assembly on the recommendations provided by the Baltimore Mayor’s Heroin Treatment & Prevention Task Force Report and to urge the General assembly to provide support for the report’s recommendations.

“As an ER doctor, I have seen the devastation of heroin addiction firsthand, and as the city’s doctor, I have seen how heroin ties into the very fabric of Baltimore,” said Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen. “It is impossible to separate heroin use from the rampant health disparities that divide our city. Baltimore has been fighting the heroin epidemic for years, and we look forward to sharing the lessons we learned with our State partners and further collaborate to heal our communities.”

In October 2014, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake convened the Heroin Treatment and Prevention Task Force to address the critical problem of opioid addiction in Baltimore City. The Task Force engaged dozens of key stakeholders and partners to study the best practices, and in July 2015, the Task Force issued 10 recommendations to guide the work of Baltimore City to prevent overdose, improve access to treatment, and reduce substance abuse.

The Task Force’s recommendations include:

• Implementing a Citywide Heroin Overdose Plan that focuses on saving lives. This plan focuses on “hotspotting” to target treatment and strategies for those most at risk for overdose and ensuring widespread dissemination of the opioid antidote, naloxone;
• Implementing an outreach campaign to educate people about substance use, de-stigmatize those who have substance use disorders and urge people with problems to seek treatment; and
• Developing an easy-to-access 24/7 intake system with immediate access to addiction counselor or social worker.

Since issuing the report, Dr. Wen has directed the Baltimore City Health Department (BCHD) and its partners to begin implementing these recommendations. Dr. Wen has led a citywide effort to expand the use of naloxone, training more than 4,000 residents this year. Last month, Dr. Wen issued a "standing order" to expand access to naloxone to those at-risk of experiencing an opioid overdose in Baltimore City and make it easier for people to get naloxone from their local pharmacist when they need it, and earlier this month, led the largest naloxone training in the nation’s history in front of tens of thousands on the National Mall.

Dr. Wen and BCHD staff, achieved another milestone, by offering members of the General Assembly a first of its kind opportunity to become trained in the use of naloxone, as part of today’s testimony.

Additionally, the Baltimore City Health Department and Behavioral Health System Baltimore partnered with Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs and Mission Media to launch dontdie.org, a campaign designed to inform the public about how naloxone can save lives and about where they can get trained.

And recently, BCHD launched a new, single phone number for Baltimore City residents to use for substance use and mental health crisis calls, services and treatment, and information. The Crisis, Information & Referral Line, 410-433-5175, will be answered 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, giving people in need of help the opportunity to talk to a trained professional at any time

Other Task Force’s recommendations include:

• Developing a data-tracking system to provide timely information about the number of people with substance use disorders, fatal and near-fatal overdoses and the city’s overall capacity to provide drug treatment;
• Organizing universal case management and access to treatment for the most vulnerable in the city including inmates and recently incarcerated individuals, focusing on evidence-based treatments including buprenorphine; and
• Working toward “treatment on demand” including developing a 24/7 walk-in treatment center for individuals with substance abuse and mental health concerns and increasing the number of treatment slots in both inpatient and outpatient settings.

City officials will look to private partners as well as the state and federal government to assist with funding for the Task Force’s recommendations. An estimated $20 million is needed over three years to accomplish these goals.

“As Baltimore continues to emerge from our recent crisis, we have a distinct opportunity to catalyze change and transform our city,” added Health Commissioner Dr. Wen. “There is a lot we have done and will continue to do on our own, but to make sustained progress, we need the strong support of our state partners. We hope that the Governor will embrace our recommendations so that together we can move the needle forward in Maryland.”

There were 303 total drug and alcohol overdose deaths in Baltimore City in 2014, compared with 246 in 2013, a 23 percent increase. Last year, 192 overdose deaths were heroin-related, compared with 150 in 2013.

There are an estimated 18,900 individuals who use heroin in Baltimore.

The full report can be found at: http://health.baltimorecity.gov/opioid-overdose/mayors-heroin-treatment-and-prevention-task-force