It appears that the United States may be on the cusp of turning a corner in its long fight against opioid abuse.  Recent data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) indicates that years of double-digit drug overdoses have leveled off.  

But America has lost many battles in the drug wars over the past 50 years.  Supply and demand dictate the drug du jour, which will cycle among heroin, cocaine, meth, designer drugs, and prescription drugs.  In 2022 alone,109,000 Americans perished from overdoses.  

The introduction of new classes of drugs into the illicit narcotics arsenal could usher in a fourth wave of the opioid crisis if law enforcement blinks.  Xylazine and nitazines are the latest drugs gaining popularity, and both come with a high body count.  Xylazine somehow limits the effectiveness of the overdose-reversing drug naloxone, while nitazines are up to ten times more potent than even fentanyl.  Ouch!

Federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies should parlay their recent victories in stemming overdose deaths by breaking the distribution supply chain.  Its tentacles have expanded past Central and South America into communist countries like China and Russia.  

The good news is that funds have started flowing from a landmark $26-billion settlement reached with several major manufacturers and distributors of prescription opioids that will clearly be the quickest and most effective way for hospitals, families, and law enforcement to receive the resources they need not just to stem the opioid crisis, but to bring about its end.

Some states have used this money to fund tangible law enforcement initiatives to combat opioid abuse.  Several Pennsylvania counties are planning to use their settlement funds to hire more police officers.  Louisiana has committed 65 million dollars directly to its state sheriff's offices to end the rampant opioid crisis in the Bayou State.  This amount constitutes 20% of its $325 million in settlement funds.

Mount Pleasant, South Carolina is anteing nearly $300,000 in settlement funds to bolster a unique partnership between its police department and WakeUp Carolina, a local non-profit.  The money will fund a "peer support specialist" who will be responsible for conducting follow-up visits with overdose victims and help them find their way to recovery.  The specialist, along with other WakeUp employees, will also have access to the police department's incident management system, allowing him to document and track overdose incidents in real time.  The program has already proven to be a success, significantly reducing the number of overdoses in the town year to date.

Unfortunately, not every state has signed on to this agreement and therefore will not have access to such resources to help bolster law enforcement efforts and launch innovative programs to end the opioid crisis.  A deeper dive into the state-level data of the newly released CDC reporting indicates that the non-participators may be experiencing the negative effects of that decision. 

While the USA, as a whole, saw the rate of fatal drug overdoses plateau in 2022, two notable holdouts to the settlement — Oklahoma and Washington State — saw their overdose rates spike.  Oklahoma had the fourth highest increase of overdose deaths in the country, experiencing a 15.5% increase, while Washington State had the grim distinction of taking the top spot by seeing a more than 24% increase in deaths year over year. 

Oklahoma declined to participate in the 26-billion-dollar settlement and instead decided to sue.  The case reached the Oklahoma State Supreme Court, which ruled against the attorney general and effectively denied access to any funds related to this settlement or otherwise. 

Washington State, which is inexplicably following the same failed legal playbook as in Oklahoma, is awaiting trial and still has time to settle.  Washington State was slated to receive more than $100 million but instead decided to go to trial, essentially stalling for time in an attempt to negotiate a higher payout.  This flawed strategy is wasting valuable time in treating the victims who require every second and dollar to get their lives back on track.  The delay also hampers law enforcement's efforts to combat the criminal pipeline of poison into their state.

The United States may finally be rounding a corner on the opioid crisis, but ending it may be impossible minus a coordinated and total commitment of all three branches of government.  Our society must also play a key role in that equation.  Citizens can become the moral compass by supporting their community agencies across all fifty states.  Having the financial resources minus a total commitment will come up short of the goal. 

John Ligato is a retired special agent with the FBI.

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