Lowell’s Od-fighting efforts praised

Abetted by a pandemic, opioid-related overdose deaths increased by about 5% in Massachusetts last year, spurred by the dramatic rise among non-hispanic Black men, effectively erasing the state’s recent progress in combating the addiction crisis.

The Department of Public Health’s semiannual report revealed there were 2,104 opioid deaths in 2020 — 102 more than 2019 and two more than the peak year of 2016. The state also released numbers for the first quarter of 2021, which showed a continued increase, with 507 reported overdose deaths, 2% more than in the same period in 2020.

“Despite all the effort and resources we poured into it, the pandemic has set back that progress,” Dr. Monica Bharel, state public health commissioner, told the Public Health Council on Wednesday.

Fatalities were concentrated on certain segments of the population. At the rate per 100,000, deaths actually declined from 2019 to 2020 among non-hispanic white men, but it increased among Blacks, Asian and Pacific Islanders, Hispanics, and nonhispanic white women.

The death rate per

100,000 among Black men surged the most, up 69%, in contrast to the 5.2% overall statewide increase per 100,000, while Hispanic men continue to have the highest rates of overdose deaths.

“This is unacceptable and deeply troubling,’’ said Bharel, who noted the same populations experiencing high overdose death rates were also hit hard by COVID-19.

That’s why Bharel said the state shifted its focus from diseases to populations, in order to address the underlying social factors that led to a host of health problems.

But there was some good news included in the otherwise somber update.

The Department of Public Health singled out communities it said experienced significant increases or decreases in fatal opioid overdoses from 2019 to 2020.

Lowell and Leominster were among the communities where fatalities dropped, along with Attleboro, Lawrence, Lynn, New Bedford, Northampton, Taunton and Westfield.

In Leominster’s case, it’s particularly encouraging to see its success in curbing OD deaths. It’s a dramatic reversal from 2019, when overdose deaths increased to 32 from 24 in 2018.

Lowell turned the corner on opioid overdoses in 2019. In the first seven months of that year, calls were down by 33% compared to the same period in 2018, according to data tracked by Trinity EMS, the city’s primary ambulance provider. In the first seven months of 2019, Trinity EMS responded to 317 opioid-related illness calls, including 176 where naxolone was administered. During the same period in 2018, Trinity responded to 471 such calls, including 262 where naxolone was administered.

From 2012 to 2017, the number of opioid overdose calls where someone required naloxone, also known by brand name Narcan, had steadily increased each year. Many factors have contributed to Lowell’s decreasing numbers. The city formed a Community Opioid Outreach Program made up of a firefighter, police officer and outreach workers from Lowell House, a drug rehab center, to follow up with people who recently overdosed.

City officials also credit the work of the Mayor’s Opioid Epidemic Crisis Task Force and the Middlesex Opioid Task Force, which brings together private, public and nonprofit stakeholders. Education programs at Lowell High School and through the Fire Department also discourage potential users from taking opioids. Lowell’s results have contributed to the overall decrease in OD fatalities throughout Middlesex County, where opioid-related deaths have declined steadily over four years, from 402 in 2016 to 299 last year, a 26% decrease.

While discouraging, the commonwealth has fared better than most other states. Preliminary Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data show drug overdose deaths spiked 29% nationally between September 2019 and September 2020. So, the efforts of Leominster, Lowell and a handful other communities kept our state’s numbers from being even higher.