State reports decline in overdose deaths, says naloxone accessibility contributed to the trend

Kirsten Wisniewski | October 10, 2024

There has been a concerted state-wide effort over the past few years in Minnesota to address the opioid crisis and overdose deaths. The Minnesota Department of Health announces on Oct. 9 through a press release that preliminary 2023 data shows an 8% drop in the number of overdose deaths in the state. The statement identified the increased access to naloxone as a contributing factor in the shift. Naloxone is the generic name for the overdose-reversal drug often sold under the brand name Narcan.

While the data is still preliminary, it would make 2023 the first year since 2018 to show a decrease in overdose deaths in the state.

Minnesota Commissioner of Health Dr. Brooke Cunningham said in the MDH statement, “We have seen a decline in opioid deaths, alongside an increase in nonfatal overdoses, in part due to greater naloxone availability.” The drop in opioid deaths between 2022 and 2023 comes after the MDH awarded $24 million to community-based organizations, health systems, Tribal nations, counties and other organizations in 2023 to help address the problem, according to a statement from the MDH on Sept. 4. According to that statement, in 2022, Minnesota saw “1,384 overdose deaths – an average of three Minnesotans dying each day from a drug overdose.” The number of overdose deaths in Minnesota in 2023 dropped to 1,274. Non-fatal overdoses remained stable between the two years.

The press release also broke down where the greatest changes occurred. While the metro area saw a 1% decrease in overdose deaths, in greater Minnesota the decrease was 21% from 2022 to 2023.

In Cook County, Public Health and Human Services, along with Grand Portage Human Services, have worked to increase access to resources like naloxone and fentanyl test strips for the public at no cost. While PHHS has been offering those supplies in their office since earlier this year, they recently made those items, along with emergency contraception and condoms, available in the Cook County Courthouse bathrooms in harm reduction cabinets. Those supplies are also available at the Cook County YMCA.

WTIP spoke with Andrea Orest, a public health educator from PHHS, earlier this year. She emphasized the importance of making harm reduction supplies available, and of destigmatizing substance misuse disorder, saying, “It’s also important to note that substance misuse is not a moral failing, rather a disease in the truest sense of the word, just like diabetes or heart disease or other chronic conditions.” She added, “If somebody experiences an overdose, and they die from it, there is no chance of recovery. So having an overdose reversal drug like Naloxone or Narcan really is giving them that opportunity that they could recover.”

While opioid overdose deaths decreased last year, deaths related to the misuse of psychostimulant substances, which includes methamphetamine, are still rising. This is a decade-long trend. Cunningham said in the MDH press release, “We know the work is not done, and we cannot rest.”

See photos of a harm reduction supply cabinet at the Cook County Courthouse. Photos by Kirsten Wisniewski.