Morris County Sees Continued Surge In Opiate Overdoses

MORRIS COUNTY, NJ - The disturbing trend of overdose increases over the course of 2020 has extended into 2021 and Morris County officials are sounding the alarm.

"New Jersey’s opiate epidemic has grown more complicated and deadly with the onset of the COVID-19 emergency. Recent overdoses are being fueled by a more potent form of fentanyl circulating in North Jersey," Morris County law enforcement and recovery partners said in a statement.

Acting Morris County Prosecutor Robert J. Carroll, Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon, Chief of Detectives Christoph Kimker, and Morris County’s Prevention is Key (PIK) Associate Director Melody Runyon said that fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, and when mixed with heroin, it can create doses of unpredictable and often lethal strength.

Since the start of 2021 alone, Morris County has experienced 16 fatal opiate and 22 non- fatal opiate overdoses in Morris County. Victims are from such communities as Boonton, Denville, East Hanover, Lincoln Park, Jefferson, Morristown, Mt. Arlington, Parsippany, Pequannock, Riverdale and Roxbury, and have ranged in ages from 24 to 60.

In all of 2020, Morris County experienced 78 overdoses found to be opiate-related.

“Each day we are losing entirely too many members of our community to drug overdoses, and drug-related deaths have only increased due to the multi-factorial challenges posed by COVID-19," Carroll said. "The Morris County Prosecutor’s Office is resolute in its commitment to investigating and enforcing applicable state law, which calls for prosecuting distributors whose sales lead to drug-related deaths as first-degree offenders. We will investigate each and every overdose death and target the dealer of these deadly poisons. Distributors who prey upon the addicted will be held responsible - for both their drug distribution offense and the loss of life that all too often results.”

Officials noted that it is an epidemic that impacts every community, and can claim victims at all stages of life.

“Let this be a warning to drug dealers that they are taking an enormous risk with every fold of heroin they distribute,” Gannon said. “Our Hope One teams, consisting of licensed clinicians, peer recovery specialists, and Sheriff’s Officers, have made 652 contacts in this year alone. Our goal is to reach the at-risk population, and we remain ever-focused in this undertaking."

Gannon noted that these personal contacts are occurring at an increasing rate, and services are obviously needed now more than ever.

Help Is Available

In 2015, Morris County launched a program to equip law enforcement officers with narcan and have deployed the overdose-reversing medication over 900 times. In 2020, there were 156 successful Narcan deployments and 22 in 2021, but Runyon said the COVID-19 emergency has caused disruption to in-person recovery meetings and religious programs due to social distancing and the fact that many in recovery have lost their jobs is placing stress on those who are already struggling with substance use.

Morris County law enforcement has partnered with service providers such as Morris County’s Prevention is Key (PIK) and Center for Addiction & Recovery Education & Services (CARES) to connect those struggling with substance use with resources. PIK and CARES have stepped up their virtual community engagement.

“We know that the opposite of addiction is connection, and that people who have a substance use disorder need connection in order to find and maintain a life in recovery," Runyon said.

In 2020, CARES Peer Recovery Specialists provided Recovery Support Services 10,669 times to 1,440 individuals, a 167 percent increase compared to 2019, Runyon said.

CARES maintains a 24/7 Telephone Recovery Support available at (973) 625-1143.

The Morris County Prosecutor’s Office has launched several programs providing alternatives to incarceration for certain drug offenses and to build a rapport between law enforcement and the community. This would include Drug Court and Operation Helping Hand (OHH), officials noted.

Morris County will be launching the next phase in 2021 of OHH, an initiative where substance abuse treatment is offered to those arrested for possessory drug offenses as an alternative to incarceration. A statewide leader, in the first two phases of Morris County Operation Helping Hand, county law enforcement made a combined 94 arrests. Of the individuals deemed eligible, 44 — or 47 percent, accepted treatment through a Certified Peer Recovery Specialist from the Center for Addiction, Recovery Education and Success (CARES). Two citizens who were not arrested were also referred to services.

A Garden State Problem

The issue spreads far beyond Morris County.

Governor Phil Murphy reaffirmed his Administration’s commitment to end the opioid epidemic as he released the 2020 year-end statistics for New Jersey Thursday.

Murphy acknowledged that the 2020 year-end data shows the loss of 3,046 New Jerseyans to suspected overdose deaths, closely comparable to 3,021 suspected overdose deaths in 2019, during a year impacted by the challenges and complexities of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Despite the complexities and burden of the COVID-19 pandemic, New Jersey averted a dramatic increase in annual suspected drug-related deaths,” Murphy said. “We are confident this is due to the strong foundation our Administration has built over the last several years. The unpredictability of the opioid crisis requires us to continue our pursuit of smart and compassionate policies focused on evidence-based solutions. We will not give up the fight against the opioid epidemic, and we will not give up on the New Jerseyans who need us most.”

To that end, Murphy has approached the legislature to move a bill package on overdose prevention and recovery resilience and pledged his commitment to working alongside Senator Joseph Vitale and Assemblyman Herb Conaway and key advocates.

Among the legislation, one proposal aims to expand low-barrier access to naloxone, the opioid overdose reversal drug, by codifying widespread authorization for obtaining, administering, and distributing naloxone for emergency medical service (EMS) professionals and others. Increasing access to naloxone for individuals most ready to respond to an overdose emergency, including peers and other laypersons, is a key harm reduction intervention that will save lives.

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