Overdose awareness & policy in CT | The Real Story

thanks for staying with us here on the real story August 31st International overdose awareness day but there are multiple overdose deaths every day on average here in Connecticut so what's working what are the conversations and priorities moving forward here with me to talk all about it state senator Saud anoir thank you so much for being here thank you for having me so as I said you have a powerful perspective here you are a state senator part of the general assembly you know you chair the public health committee but you're also a doctor yourself you've spearheaded much of the state's response to the opioid epidemic drug adiction needs spreading Naran most of all because you know of all these roles you've spoken to a lot of people who have been in the throws of addiction who have recovered people who have lost loved ones what have you learned from them especially around how we talk about addiction this is one of the most important questions and and then by the end of the day today four more people would have died wow and then these are each and every one of the deaths are preventable deaths I think if there was one single thing we can do better as a state is the stigma okay the stigma is actually part of the problem now I know we have done a very good job in trying to get Naran over to people Naran saves lives whenever anybody uses it who has had an overdose that's going to protect them at that time but having said that the reality is majority of the people who are dying from overdose they're dying alone and they're alone because they don't have a support system and they don't have the they have internal stigma there's an external stigma in our society and that's something that we have to address and so coming off of that you've been in public office for quite a while now on a community level and now obviously on a state level from what you've seen what has Connecticut done that has worked is there anything that sticks out to you and then I know you mentioned stigma but is there anything else that you really think the state should be focusing on to do better absolutely so so there are a number of things first of all we have to make sure that enough availability of Naran is there ac across the state right harm reduction is a very important part uh harm reduction centers in the communities that are functioning they are allowing people to get U needle exchange uh syringe exchange but also they're giving them the opportunity to get as much Naran as they need but also getting the fental test strips these are all important as aspects to try and have a better identification of the risk but also managing that risk um having said that we also have been able to put money into the treatment having uh methodone treatment or other treatments that are there and then medical assistance treatment that is all helping the people who are ready for rehabilitation so these are effective ways but we have a lot of more work to do you brought up harm reduction centers you know we know that sometimes a controversial topic they can be a tough cell for people people in certain communities we have seen a lot of states with them that tend to go through push back even though you know we've seen from statistics and from people that they do work there's a lot of times the statement from people that they feel like harm reduction centers are encouraging drug use what's your response that what would you say to to people who maybe aren't so sure about them and think that you know they might not be the best fit what what have you seen from from what they are doing for the community and and this is part of the that I was talking about but the reality is the data shows that they're not increasing the usage it is only giving the people an opportunity to be able to be in a safer environment and and so it's not a source of spread it's a source of getting the people safer and then and helping them get closer to getting Rehabilitation so one of the biggest challenges that people are experiencing loneliness and they're becoming refugees from their own family their own workplace from their friends and if there's a safe space for them that gives them the opportunity to get acceptance but also gets them closer to accepting uh treatment and Rehabilitation on a legislative level here you know obviously overdoses close calls drug use we you know we're seeing the statistics are getting worse and worse and there's definitely a consensus as you've been saying that you know we need to do more and you've been leading these discussions drafting proposals we you know just marking overdose Awareness Day you know a couple months from the next legislative session starting next January what do you want to see reprioritized are there any measures that you think need to be brought up again or reintroduced once you all join back together at the Capital One of the thing that we need to have a very robust conversation as a community as a state is um this safe cons consumption sites right um this safe injection sites these are actually proven to be effective right uh other part in in parts of Europe they've had them for 40 years in in Vancouver they've had it over 20 years and they have saved thousands of lives and in New York as well now there is a safe consumption site which is actually saving a lot of lives every single day we will have to have serious conversation around this topic because uh if we really want to save lives this is the way to do it you have to be alive to get Rehabilitation right and you know we know to a person doesn't necessarily have to be addicted to overdose you mentioned at uh centers having the fentanyl test strips we know testing is a really per uh important part of this as we are seeing a lot of these drugs be lace now and so sometimes it might just be someone's first or even just Second Use of a drug when they overdose as a doctor and a lawmaker you know what do we do with that I know there's been a bigger push to make more drug testing available so so uh this is one of the biggest threats there is no room for experimentation you have a very long acting a very potent drug drug that is being illegally brought in and is being used and one used and person is dead and I've actually been able to hold and cry the families who have lost their loved ones who were just taking a pain medicine because of a pain that they were going through and and that's why it's important to recognize that what's on the streets what's out there is very dangerous it can be life-threatening if not life taking right away for that individual so there's a law enforcement part that is actually very robust and that needs to be strengthened further but there's a ed tional opportunity for individuals to be aware of that what's out there is very dangerous even if it's in mix with cannabis or any other drugs or pills that are out there right and you mentioned about you know speaking with those families who have lost loved ones I know all the legislators we have on the show they tell us that really informs the decisions that you all are making at the state capital is hearing those stories from constituents from residents is there anything in particular that you've learned from them that they've brought to you as points they want you to focus on yes one of the thing is we need to understand that the person is not making a choice to be addicted it is a disease and and for the society to know that this is not a choice somebody has made that is a disease if you start to treat it as like a disease and start to identify what led to it start to address those aspects and then have the empathy kindness love to be able to accept those individuals give them a reason to live and take away the pain we will be in far better place yeah and when it comes to the opioid epidemic last overdose awareness day we had uh someone on real story who had been addicted herself and unfortunately lost her husband to an opioid overdose we were talking about the legal set settlements and the money that you've been able to help distribute to community efforts as well as new ideas we had asked her you know was that enough or what the sackers big Pharma the health industry as a whole could really do to ever fix this and and her answer was nothing she said there was nothing they could do to make amends but every penny made could at least go to Services you're in the health industry and on the prescriber side and you've now been a part of making those amends tell me about what that experience has been like for you it's it's um when you are sitting with a family and a patient who has just died and you're crying with them you feel helpless yeah and and as a legislator you feel that you can do more so this sort of is a way for that pain that we are all experiencing in the healthcare world are able to look at what can we do as a policy end so that's where there's an opportunity so I go with all the pain that the families and I I am suffering with because of the pain of the people I've taken care of as a way of solving the problem and not resting because like I said in initially every every child every individual every adult these are preventable debts and where is some of this settlement money go gone to this is going to the the communities the settlement is along with the laws that were put in place uh based on the settlement agreement that settlement agreement requires the funding to go through towns as well gotcha so the towns are getting the money and the towns have that opportunity to decide how they use it but I do think that there's an opportunity not only in the prevention site I've seen a lot of heavy effort on the prevention side which is reasonable but we have to start the treatment plans we have to have support systems for the already hurting number of places that can give Rehabilitation so we have to provide it over there as well yeah and have you heard anything so far I know as I said it's still you know a little bit of a ways away until the next legislative session but I feel like everyone's always you know in that mindset what have you heard from fellow lawmakers you know obviously last year was or this past session uh this year was a short one next year is a budget session again but a longer session do you feel like you'll have bipartisan and wide support for for some of these proposals and ideas yes so I look the the drugs do not differentiate who's who right and and and the people who are dying they're Democrats Republicans are unaffiliated the reality is the solutions are going to be bipartisan then we will do whatever it takes to pass these laws which are going to help save lives that's what we have been been doing in the public health committee most of our laws we've been able to work together and find ways to help the people and we'll continue to do that and in our last minute here we were talking about overdose Awareness Day the timing of this you started out telling me a little bit about changing that stigma is there anything that you hope can be done in these conversations whether it's on a community level or even at the dinner table what do you want people to know sure I I think the first thing is the stigma that is on the inside a person is experiencing who are experiencing drug use uh they feel that they have failed I want people to know that this is a disease and and and we are there for you you are not going to be alone um we are going through every opportunity to help them uh we want them to know that they are valued they're loved they're cared for and at the level of the the community we want to make sure that the community recognizes that we have a responsibility to accept people meet them where they are and once we are able to meet them where they are we have an opportunity to bring them to a better and a safer Place yeah well Senator thank you so much as always for taking the time we really appreciate you being here thank you for having me thank you of course we know across the state and in every Community there are so many services initiatives that can meet you wherever you're at whenever you need you can call 211 or go on the State website to find support of all types from treatment to support groups Naran and more that does it for us now on the real story if you want to watch these segments again you can head to fox61.com or download the free FOX 61 News app and watch the real story every Sunday at 10:00 a.m. right here on FOX 61 or streaming on FOX 61 Plus have a great morning [Music]