On Fentanyl and the Mitigation Steps Everyone Can Take

This is what I’ve learned from my daughter’s death from fentanyl, as described in the article I posted here yesterday. As I wrote, if these steps can save even one life, I’ll have done my job. I’m also glad to see that many college-age kids I meet know all about Narcan and that it’s widely available on campuses and even high schools around the country. 🌺

In her lonesome death, Roxanne became a statistic in the terrible calamity of opioid abuse that has swept the country, where fentanyl overdoses are now the leading cause of death for people between 18 and 45. Although cities like Baltimore, with 6,000 dead in six years, have gotten most of the attention, the situation in Washington is dire.

According to a report from D.C.’s Chief Medical Examiner, 504 people died from fentanyl overdoses in 2023. That’s almost three people every two days. The situation is so bad in the District, one detective told me, that seven people died from one shipment of fentanyl-modified cocaine to the city in 2024. The sellers were never caught.

Sadly, there is a racial component to these figures: 84 percent of the fentanyl fatalities in D.C. are Black, almost double their 43.5 percent of the city’s population. “I believe part of the reason we haven’t had more attention called to this issue is because of who it’s impacting,” Ward 5 Councilmember Zachary Parker told NBC4 reporter Jackie Bensen when those statistics came out. “Many of them [are] Black and brown.” This is true nationally as well. As a lifelong resident of Washington with many Black friends, I know that Roxy would be livid about this.

To its credit, NBC4 is one of the only media outlets in Washington paying attention. In October 2024 it broadcast a riveting, week-long series, Fighting Fentanyl. The stories included moving interviews with parents from the District who’ve lost children to fentanyl and suggestions of where to get help for addiction and kids turning to drugs. As the father of a local victim, I’d like to suggest one important remedy that was not mentioned in the series: harm mitigation.

In my opinion, Washington, D.C., should fund a massive effort to distribute testing strips that can detect fentanyl, as well as narcan (also known as naloxone), which can reverse the effect of opioid overdoses. I want the the city to consider distributing these all over D.C.’s bar scene and in the clubs and hotels where people congregate. The money for the program could come from the city’s Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission. It is slated to receive a total of $35 million from the $26 billion federal settlement with Purdue Pharma and the notorious Sackler Family. They first made and distributed opioid painkillers and hyped their effects to an unwitting public.

Similar steps have been taken by public agencies and private organizations throughout the country, including in San Francisco, Buffalo, and Northwest Arkansas. A North Carolina-based non-profit, Musicians for Overdose Prevention, distributes narcan to indie rock bands and music venues all over the Southeast. Meanwhile, the National Harm Reduction Coalition in New York City helps with coordination and information around the country.

All the links to these organizations are in the article. Thanks for reading!