Community programs mitigate opioid deaths significantly.

David Wazana has written a great article for the Rochester Beacon entitled, "Rochester joins effort to raise naloxone awareness." which was published on June 12, 2026. 

Rochester’s Neighborhood Ambassador Program, a city-funded, community-driven program, seeks to address the opioid epidemic by recruiting and training neighborhood ambassadors in opioid crisis interventions. NAP also distributes naloxone kits, which contain naloxone nasal sprays and strips to test for fentanyl and xylazine.

According to preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control, 2025 saw an almost 14% decrease in overdose deaths; New York, along with Rhode Island, North Carolina, Alabama, and Vermont, saw the largest decline, with 25% fewer overdose deaths in 2025 than in 2024.

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In Monroe County, opioid-related overdose deaths dropped from 433 in 2023 to 216 in 2024, a decline of 50%, according to recent data from the county medical examiner. The decline mirrors a national trend, which researchers and advocates like Klee attribute to harm-reduction efforts and increased access to Nalaxone, as well as growing awareness of the dangers of opioid use.

In 2023, at the height of the nationwide opioid epidemic, opioid overdose deaths peaked at 79,000 before beginning a steep decline, which has continued since then.

I have known many people professionally and personally who have died from opioid overdoses. I also know of people who have been saved from dying by the quick administration of naloxone.

Deaths from naloxone overdoses are devastasting for families and communities. In attempting to counteract these loses it is important to know, support, and utilize harm reduction strategies. The data indicates that they work saving lives and improving the health of individuals, and the well being of families and communities.

As a side note, David Wazana's article is a great example of solution oriented journalism. Kudos to him for his good article and for the Rochester Beacon for publishing it.

Addiction Drug Underused by Primary Care Docs in U.S.

From Med Line Health Day 08/03/17 THURSDAY, Aug. 3, 2017 (HealthDay News) --

Many doctors aren't making full use of a medication that can wean people off addiction to heroin and prescription painkillers, according to results of a new survey. 

 Buprenorphine is the first drug for opioid use disorder that's approved for prescription by primary care physicians, allowing treatment in the privacy of a doctor's office. But many doctors aren't applying for the federal waiver that would allow them to prescribe buprenorphine, said researcher Andrew Huhn. He's a postdoctoral fellow with the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine's behavioral pharmacology research unit. 

 Further, most who have obtained a buprenorphine waiver aren't prescribing the drug to as many patients as allowed, Huhn said. This reluctance to fully utilize buprenorphine is hampering efforts to combat the epidemic of opioid abuse in the United States, Huhn said. 

 For more click here.

Editor's note:

American's have been led to believe that their is a magic bullet and a magic key for addiction problems when in fact they are complex, multi-dimensional, and not easily addressed in a primary physician's office in a 12 minute office visit.

Addiction treatment requires not only medication but also a focus on the psycho-social, legal, and spiritual issues which addiction involves. This is not  an area of expertise for most primary care physicians nor do they have the time and energy to address these issues without them being a disruptive to their medical practice.

Bottom line is that treatment of addiction is best when it involves not only medication but a counseling component as well. Primary care offices are not equipped for this counseling component of high quality addiction treatment.