Western Pennsylvania and parts of Ohio and Appalachia form what’s known as “addiction alley,”a region where drug use has soared over the past two decades and the opioid epidemic has claimed tens of thousands of lives. As residents struggling with substance abuse adhere to sheltering-in-place regulations due to the coronavirus pandemic, those isolated from friends, family, jobs and basic routines are particularly vulnerable to relapse and overdose due to isolation.
Many suffer from anxiety and depression, and fewer are seeking drug treatment services, worried officials say. And although telemedicine and video conferencing has enabled many to stay in touch with facilities and counselors, that isn’t always the optimal approach for those in the early stages of treatment. The region is also dealing with a resurgence of methamphetamine use, compounding the difficulties of the opioid epidemic. Says one addiction expert, “the reality is that a deadly disease like the coronavirus will not stop addiction.”
And finally, the Brookings Institute has come up with recommendations for the U.S. and Canada—two countries grappling with the opioid crisis—to combat the epidemic. Looking at countries such as Germany, where prescriptions for opioid painkillers for chronic non-cancer pain are uncommon, the report suggests that flooding the healthcare system with prescription opioids is not needed for population pain management. Second, it says limits to healthcare access—due to lack of adequate insurance, for example—can make the epidemic worse. And finally, Brookings says we need strict rules under which opioids are prescribed (Germany, for example, does not have an opioid epidemic.)