Opioid Summit Planned In Decatur

DECATUR, GA — Eyeing the nationwide opioid epidemic, political leaders in DeKalb County have planned a summit to help address the deadly problem.

DeKalb County Commissioner Larry Johnson is hosting the second annual National Opioid Summit at the Porter Sanford Performing Arts Center, at 3181 Rainbow Dr. in Decatur. The summit will be held on July 26, 2018, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The summit is expected to draw participants from all over the country with the primary focus of strengthening local responses to the opioid problem through education, advocacy and collaboration.

(For more news like this, find your local Patch here. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here.)

Organizers say opioid-involved overdose deaths have been rapidly increasing in Georgia since 2010, driven
largely by increased use and misuse of prescription opioids like oxycodone and hydrocodone. From 2010 to 2016, the total number of opioid-involved overdose deaths increased by 117 percent, from 426 to 929 deaths, and the rate increased by 111 percent, from 4.3 to 9.1 deaths per 100,000 persons.

Johnson, who is the chairman of the Large Urban County Caucus in the National Association of Counties, representing over 150 million people, said he sees firsthand the impact of the problem.

"We must continue to collaborate in the different counties to fight this opioid epidemic," Johnson said. "We cannot do this by ourselves; it takes all of us to tackle this crisis."

Community stakeholders, policy makers, citizens and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the summit.

The event will be held in partnership with STAND Inc., Aetna, Fulton-DeKalb Hospital Authority, Emory Healthcare and DeKalb Community Service Board.

For additional information, contact Commissioner Johnson’s office at 404-371-2425, or visit his website.

Photo via Shutterstock