3 Clinton Residents Died of Overdoses In 2016

By Rich Scinto (Patch Staff)

Once again Connecticut saw a mammoth rise in drug overdoses as the opioid addiction epidemic shows no signs of slowing down. (See a full list of deaths by town at end of article.)

There were 917 fatal overdoses from 2016, which is up from 729 in 2015. The vast majority of overdoses involve some sort of opioid, and figures don’t include pure alcohol overdoses.

The following towns had the most residents die of opioid overdoses in 2016:

• Hartford: 62
• Bridgeport: 49
• New Haven: 44
• Bristol: 35
• New Britain: 35
• Waterbury 33
• Norwich: 24
• Meriden: 24
• West Haven: 21
• Stratford: 20

Related: CT Mom Pens Heartbreaking Note About Losing Her Son to Drug Overdose

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Overdoses are far from just a big-city problem, especially when population is factored. For example, seven Oxford (population estimate 13,000) residents died of overdoses in 2016 (the town only had three fatal overdoses within it’s borders). That’s a far cry from the 49 Bridgeport residents that died in 2016, but Bridgeport has more than 10 times the population of Oxford.

Connecticut legislators have passed a number of laws in the past few years in an attempt to curb the opioid epidemic. The state implemented a prescription monitoring program to curb “doctor shopping” for multiple opioid prescriptions. The state and many municipalities have armed police or other first emergency responders with naloxone to reverse overdoses in the field. Naloxone can now be prescribed by pharmacists as well.

A law passed last year limited initial prescription for opioids to seven days. After that it’s up to a physician if the patient needs more. Exceptions are in place for chronic pain, cancer-associated pain and palliative care.

What’s Being Proposed in 2017

This year legislators have proposed more than 20 bills related to opioids. Among some of them are:

• AN ACT PROHIBITING PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIANS FROM PRESCRIBING OPIOIDS.
• AN ACT PROHIBITING THE DISPENSING OF OPIOIDS OUTSIDE OF A HOSPITAL SETTING TO ANY PERSON UNDER THE AGE OF EIGHTEEN.
• AN ACT REQUIRING PAIN CONTRACTS PRIOR TO PRESCRIBING OPIOIDS.
• AN ACT INCREASING THE PENALTIES FOR THE ILLEGAL SALE OF OPIOIDS.
• AN ACT CONCERNING HOMICIDE BY SALE OF AN OPIOID CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE.

The homicide by sale act would make selling an “...opioid controlled substance that results in the death of the person who purchased the substance from the dealer” a homicide-related charge. There have been similar proposals in New York State as well.

Proponents of similar bills argue that dealers are knowingly cutting heroin with dangerous additives such as fentanyl, according to NBC Connecticut. Critics argue that it would take a great amount of resources to make such a conviction.

Another bill in its infancy would require “pain contracts,” also known as narcotic contracts or controlled substance agreements, when a doctor prescribes opioids.

About half of the states currently require some sort of contract when prescribing opioids for long-term pain management, said Summer McGee, an associate professor of management and head of the health management program at the University of New Haven.

Researchers estimate that about 3 to 4 percent of U.S. adults received long-term opioid therapy in 2005, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That number is likely currently higher as prescriptions of opioids have dramatically increased.

“Overprescribing opioids — largely for chronic pain — is a key driver of America’s drug-overdose epidemic,” said CDC Director Tom Frieden in 2016 when the CDC released opioid prescribing guidelines.

McGee and others wrote an article for the Cleveland Journal of Medicine that suggests best practices for the use and formation of such contracts. There are only four pain specialists for every 100,000 patients in need of long-term pain management and much of that duty falls onto primary care physicians.

“A lot of physicians aren’t comfortable or sure how to manage a patient’s pain,” McGee said, adding that the average physician regardless of specialty only gets about eight hours of training in pain management.

McGee and other authors of the article suggest that the contracts be called “controlled substance agreements,” which has a better connotation than a “narcotic contract.” They also suggest that the contracts focus on shared patient/doctor goals and avoid too much medical jargon that can confuse patients.

“What we are suggesting is a focus on having a conversation with patients about the appropriate way to use opioids as part of therapy,” McGee said.

The group of authors were spurred to write the article when they considered ways that can help stem the opioid epidemic.

“Primary care doctors are at the frontline of healthcare,” McGee said, “If we can help them be more comfortable and better informed about how and when use of opioids is appropriate that will go a long way in stemming the opioid crisis in this country.”

Number of residents death from overdose by towns in Connecticut:

• Hartford 62
• Bridgeport 49
• New Haven 44
• Bristol 35
• New Britain 35
• Waterbury 33
• Norwich 24
• Meriden 24
• West Haven 21
• Stratford 20
• Manchester 18
• Danbury 17
• Enfield 15
• Wallingford 15
• Torrington 13
• Shelton 13
• East Hartford 13
• Milford 13
• Hamden 12
• Ansonia 11
• New London 11
• Middletown 11
• Norwalk 10
• West Hartford 9
• Stamford 9
• Naugatuck 8
• Southington 8
• Oxford 7
• Plainville 7
• Windsor 7
• Fairfield 7
• Branford 6
• Groton 6
• Somers 5
• Griswold 5
• Colchester 5
• Monroe 5
• Farmington 5
• Wethersfield 5
• East Haven 5
• Vernon 5
• Lebanon 4
• Portland 4
• East Windsor 4
• Suffield 4
• Seymour 4
• Madison 4
• Bethel 4
• Berlin 4
• North Haven 4
• Windham 4
• Trumbull 4
• Columbia 3
• Easton 3
• Brooklyn 3
• Hebron 3
• Windsor Locks 3
• Derby 3
• Clinton 3
• Tolland 3
• Ellington 3
• Watertown 3
• Guilford 3
• New Milford 3
• Newtown 3
• Newington 3
• North Canaan 2
• Deep River 2
• Willington 2
• Beacon Falls 2
• Marlborough 2
• Thomaston 2
• Woodstock 2
• Woodbury 2
• Prospect 2
• Old Saybrook 2
• Granby 2
• East Hampton 2
• Orange 2
• Cromwell 2
• New Fairfield 2
• North Branford 2
• Ledyard 2
• Brookfield 2
• Stonington 2
• Waterford 2
• Darien 2
• Simsbury 2
• South Windsor 2
• Mansfield 2
• Glastonbury 2
• Greenwich 2
• Franklin 1
• Chaplin 1
• Voluntown 1
• Ashford 1
• Chester 1
• Lisbon 1
• Middlefield 1
• North Stonington 1
• Harwinton 1
• Essex 1
• Westbrook 1
• Durham 1
• Old Lyme 1
• Middlebury 1
• Haddam 1
• Woodbridge 1
• East Haddam 1
• Thompson 1
• Burlington 1
• Weston 1
• Winchester 1
• Coventry 1
• Plainfield 1
• Wolcott 1
• Killingly 1
• Avon 1
• Montville 1
• Rocky Hill 1
• Ridgefield 1
• Westport 1

Deaths by where person initially overdosed:

• Hartford 84
• New Haven 70
• Bridgeport 49
• Waterbury 36
• New Britain 33
• Bristol 31
• Meriden 25
• New London 25
• Norwich 19
• Stratford 19
• West Haven 19
• Manchester 17
• Danbury 16
• Milford 15
• East Hartford 14
• Enfield 14
• Torrington 13
• Wallingford 13
• Shelton 12
• Fairfield 11
• Middletown 11
• Hamden 10
• Stamford 10
• Groton 8
• Naugatuck 8
• Norwalk 8
• Ansonia 7
• Plainville 7
• Southington 7
• Wethersfield 7
• East Haven 6
• Trumbull 6
• West Hartford 6
• Branford 5
• Griswold 5
• New Milford 5
• Newington 5
• Vernon 5
• Windham 5
• Windsor 5
• Bethel 4
• Colchester 4
• Farmington 4
• Lebanon 4
• Monroe 4
• Portland 4
• Seymour 4
• Somers 4
• Watertown 4
• Beacon Falls 3
• Columbia 3
• Cromwell 3
• Ellington 3
• Glastonbury 3
• Hebron 3
• Newtown 3
• Oxford 3
• Simsbury 3
• Suffield 3
• Willington 3
• Avon 2
• Berlin 2
• Brookfield 2
• Brooklyn 2
• Clinton 2
• Deep River 2
• Derby 2
• East Hampton 2
• East Windsor 2
• Greenwich 2
• Mansfield 2
• Marlborough 2
• North Canaan 2
• North Haven 2
• Old Saybrook 2
• Orange 2
• Prospect 2
• Rocky Hill 2
• Stonington 2
• Tolland 2
• Waterford 2
• Woodstock 2
• Burlington 1
• Chaplin 1
• Chester 1
• Darien 1
• Durham 1
• East Haddam 1
• Essex 1
• Franklin 1
• Granby 1
• Guilford 1
• Harwinton 1
• Killingly 1
• Lisbon 1
• Litchfield 1
• Madison 1
• Middlebury 1
• Middlefield 1
• Montville 1
• New Canaan 1
• New Fairfield 1
• North Branford 1
• North Stonington 1
• Ridgefield 1
• South Windsor 1
• Sterling 1
• Thomaston 1
• Thompson 1
• Voluntown 1
• Westbrook 1
• Westport 1
• Winchester 1
• Windsor Locks 1
• Wolcott 1
• Woodbridge 1

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