Opioid overdose–related emergency department (ED) visits increased 30 percent from July 2016 through September 2017, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study finds.
The increase spanned all regions of the country, but was highest in the Midwest, where such visits increased 70 percent in that period. In addition, opioid overdoses in large cities increased 54 percent.
To combat this rising epidemic, CDC recommends that providers:
- offer overdose prevention training and naloxone to patients, family, and friends;
- link patients to treatment and services in the community; and
- start medication-assisted treatment in the ED.
CDC will host a webinar on March 13 from 2-3:30 pm EST on coordinating clinical and public health responses to opioid overdoses treated in EDs. The webinar will feature Surgeon General Jerome Adams, MD, and other public health professionals.
America’s Essential Hospitals has established a resource page for the opioid epidemic. Visit this page for new and updated information.
Contact Senior Director of Policy Erin O’Malley at eomalley@essentialhospitals.org or 202.585.0127 with questions.
