PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — In January, a special report from the National Drug Helpline revealed that Oregon is the No. 1 state in the U.S. for substance abuse problems. A more recent study shared by Oregon State University shows that the drug crisis has become especially dangerous for residents recently released from prison.
According to OSU, opioid overdoses are the leading cause of death for people who have been newly discharged from prison — not just in the nation, but on a global scale.
Researchers with the OSU College of Pharmacy, Oregon Health & Science University-Portland State University School of Public Health and Oregon Department of Corrections expanded on this issue on a state level, in a study published in the Journal of Substance Use and Addiction Treatment.
The scientists combined data from 2014 to 2018 on Oregon’s Department of Corrections, Medicaid recipients and hospital discharges to determine how many recently-released Oregonians suffered from fatal and non-fatal opioid overdoses.
Researchers found that women were more likely to experience an opioid overdose than their male counterparts and that formerly-incarcerated people were 10 times more likely to have an overdose than the general population.
For most Oregon residents, there are 93 overdoses for every 100,000 “person years.” For those in the formerly incarcerated group, that number increases to 1,086 overdoses for every 100,000 “person years.”
Furthermore, opioid overdose rates for recently-released Oregonians are significantly higher in their first two weeks outside of prison — when the overdose risk is twice more likely than it is at any other time.
“And taking everything into account, the risk estimates we developed for the recently incarcerated are likely conservative,” OSU College of Pharmacy professor Daniel Hartung said. Hartung led the study along with Elizabeth Needham Waddell and Katherine Kempany.
“Many people with substance use disorders end up in the criminal justice system, and prisons and jails have historically not been equipped to manage the health care needs of high-risk individuals,” Hartung added.
House Bill 2395, which would give more Oregonians access to fast-acting opioid medication, passed the Oregon House on Monday.
If the Senate also approves the Opioid Harm Reduction Package, the state could be one step closer to preventing more drug overdoses — and as a result, saving more lives.