WAYNE ALLEN

PDT Staff Writer

The Ohio Department of Alcohol & Drug Addiction Services (ODADAS) released its 2012 annual report on Friday, outlining Ohio’s Attack on the Opiate Addiction and Overdose Epidemic and reporting that Scioto and Gallia counties have seen a 15 percent combined drop in the amount of narcotics prescribed in 2011 — nearly two million fewer doses.

The reports states that, according to data given to ODADAS by the Scioto County Drug Action Team, 85 percent of substance abuse treatment requests at the Scioto County Counseling Center are for opiate addiction, making a 300 percent increase in the past three years.

“The abuse of prescription medications. specifically opiates, has reached epidemic proportions in Ohio. The crisis has dramatically impacted individuals and families, leaving communities devastated and anxious to find ways to prevent addiction and stop the deaths caused by abuse of narcotic painkillers and use of heroin,” the report states.

Some facts outlined in the report include the “prescribing of narcotic painkillers in Ohio grew an estimated 1,000 percent from 1997-2010,” based on ODADAS figures.

The report lists the accomplishments of particular state offices and its efforts to reduce opiate addiction and overdoses throughout the state.

ODADAS saw an expansion of the SOLACE model to the SOLACE Family Engagement Network with the creation of 25 new groups., and created 24 new Opiate Task Forces focusing on prevention, treatment, and law enforcement. The Ohio Department of Health also cites the launch of Project DAWN (Deaths Avoided with Naloxone) in June of 2012, which is being conducted at the Portsmouth City Health Department. In 2011-12, the department funded four new community-based prescription abuse prevention coalition for a total of 10 throughout the state.

The Ohio Department of Public Safety and State Highway Patrol is reporting that through June of 2012, the state highway patrol has seized 327 percent more heroin as compared to the same period in 2011. The patrol has seen a 30 percent increase in drug arrests, compared to this time last year. The patrol has seen a 10 percent increase in OVI arrests compared to this time last year. In the office of the Attorney General, the Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation seized 55,000 pills in 2011, valued at around $1.5 million. The Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy has trained 1,100 officers on the scope of the prescription drug problem.

The report also outlines accomplishments from the Ohio Office of Medicaid, State Medical Board, State Pharmacy Board and the Ohio State Dental Board.

To view the report in its entirety, visit www.odadas.state.oh.us.

Wayne Allen may be reached at 740-353-3101, ext. 208, or wallen@heartlandpublications.com.