Kent County is using a $19 million settlement intended to combat the opioid crisis to invest in a wide range of services.
The opioid settlement is a result of a lawsuit brought nationally by governments against opioid-related defendants, including drug manufacturers, distributors and pharmacies. The money from these settlements was distributed to states and then allocated among counties and municipalities.
Opioids are a class of drugs that include the illegal drug heroin, synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, and pain relievers available legally by prescription, including morphine and codeine.
Kent County is set to receive $19,075,917 in variable annual payments through 2038 as part of the settlements. To date, the county has received $4,698,866.
Jail-based programs
The largest share of the settlement, $400,000 per year, will be used to increase funding for jail-based treatment programs to reduce the high frequency of overdose following release from incarceration.
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Courtesy of Kent CountyRachel Jantz, an epidemiologist for Kent County Health Department
“We know that individuals who are released from incarceration have some of the highest risks of overdose,” says Rachel Jantz, an epidemiologist for the Kent County Health Department and co-chair of the Kent County Opioid Task Force.
Additional funding areas include:
- Expanding recovery coaching services for those who dropped out of treatment and are at high risk of overdose, $200,000 per year.
- Enhancing community distribution of naloxone as a tool to reverse overdose, $30,000 per year.
- Improving access to harm reduction tools, including fentanyl test strips, $10,000 per year.
- Broadening prevention education programs for middle and high school students, $125,000 in the second year.
An evolving threat
The opioid epidemic has had a devastating impact on Kent County residents. In 2023, 93 Kent County residents died from drug overdoses, with opioids involved 68% of the time. The average age of victims of opioid-involved deaths was 44.4 years, with 80% being males and 20% females.
“We have seen an increase, just like the rest of the country, since the 2010s,” says Jantz. “Initially, that was with prescription opioids, which is the reason for this opioid settlement funding. Then we saw an increase in heroin.
“Recently, we’ve seen an increase in fentanyl (a potent synthetic opioid drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use as an analgesic, or pain relief),” adds Jantz, noting fentanyl is an FDA-approved medication, but the fentanyl resulting in overdoses is illegally manufactured. "Last year actually was our first year that we’ve seen a decrease in overdoses in a long time but we have seen an increase in psychostimulants so that would include cocaine and methamphetamine.”
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Courtesy of Kent CountyDr. Jayne Courts, a Trinity Health internal medicine physician, member of the Kent County Medical Society Board, and co-chair of the Kent County Opioid Task Force.
A 2018 Michigan law has curtailed the misuse of prescription opioids, but now more users are buying less-expensive synthetic substances that can have deadly consequences, according to Dr. Jayne Courts, a Trinity Health internal medicine physician, member of the Kent County Medical Society Board, and co-chair of the Kent County Opioid Task Force.
“Prescription opioids have played a role in fueling this epidemic, but over time, it has shifted to illicitly obtained prescription opioids,” says Courts. "The implementation of the controlled substance laws reduced access to legally prescribed opioids for persons who may have been battling a substance use disorder (not substance abuse disorder). The laws may have led to the increased use of heroin and synthetic opioids that are less expensive and much more potent.
Addiction to a substance means its use adversely affects a person’s lifestyle and/or health. The person’s use of that substance affects personal relationships, their ability to hold down a job, or go to school as they crave and seek that substance, according to Courts.
“Anyone can develop tolerance and chemical dependency to opioid pain medications, but that’s not the same as developing a substance use disorder,” she says.
Contamination threat
Equally alarming is the fact that opioids illegally purchased may be contaminated with other dangerous drugs. A person who thinks they are buying heroin or cocaine are unknowingly getting other substances, Courts says.
“In Kent County, people have an opportunity to bring the substance and have it tested to see what’s in it,” she says. “And there are also these test strips for fentanyl and xylazine, which is a horse tranquilizer.”
Another deadly example Courts and Jantz have observed is cocaine, which is a stimulant, mixed with opioids, which are depressants.
“So a person who has no tolerance to opioids is expecting a stimulant and, lo and behold, a portion of that cocaine is fentanyl (which is an opioid). It’s like giving someone an extra dose of opioid they have no tolerance to.”
Another hurdle some must clear is the stigma they feel for admitting they have a substance addiction. This shouldn’t prevent them from seeking help, Courts says.
“We really need to try to reduce the stigma and let people know this is a disease. It’s not the person’s fault,” says Courts. “We just want to be there to help identify access to treatment and support the person through that process.”