Pa. overdose deaths likely to increase because of pandemic disruption

Overdose deaths in Pennsylvania will likely tick upward for the first time in several years when 2020 reports are finalized, according to state officials, showing the effects of a year marked by isolation and a cutoff of group and in-person services.

Overdose drug deaths were higher month over month for the first half of 2020 as compared to the same months in 2019, according to updates given by state officials Tuesday on the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program.

Because records regarding drug overdose deaths often lag behind the deaths themselves by 3 to 6 months, said Carrie Ann Thomas Goetz, a member of the PDMP office, it is likely numbers from the latter half of 2020 will show increases as well.

In 2019, 4,458 people died from drug overdoses across the state. That number in 2020 – with months of data still not processed – is 3,954.

“We know that a public health pandemic at the same time as the opioid epidemic has made for a challenging year,” said Ray Barishansky, deputy decretary of health preparedness. “It is up to all of us to come alongside those who are struggling with the disease of addiction and to offer them our support. Treatment works, and recovery is possible.”

While overall emergency room visits decreased by about 19% last year, according to state data, opioid overdose-related emergency room visits ticked upward by just under 1%.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in December that the 12-month period ending in May 2020 saw more than 81,000 people die from overdoses — the highest number recorded in a 12-month period.

The report noted that while overdose deaths were already on the rise prior to the pandemic, “the latest numbers suggest an acceleration of overdose deaths during the pandemic.”

“The disruption to daily life due to the covid-19 pandemic has hit those with substance use disorder hard,” Dr. Robert Redford, director of the CDC, said in a statement at the time. “As we continue the fight to end this pandemic, it’s important to not lose sight of different groups being affected in other ways. We need to take care of people suffering from unintended consequences.”