TITLE
Title
BUDGET AMENDMENT: FY25 MEDICATION-ASSISTED TREATMENT (MAT) GRANT FROM THE NC DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY (NCDPS)
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SPONSOR
Sponsor
Sheriff Danny H. Rogers (Captain Wes Mecham)
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BACKGROUND
Background
In 2022, North Carolina's average overdose death rate was 41.4 per 100,000 residents while Guilford County’s rate was 42.4 per 100,000 people. In 2023, the overdose emergency department visit rate in North Carolina was 161.4 out of 100,000 people while the rate in Guilford County was 191.2 per 100,000 residents. In 2022, the overdose death rate from illicit drug involvement in Guilford County was 80.7 per 100,000 overdose deaths, beating the state average of 78.9 per 100,000. This places Guilford County in the high range among North Carolina counties. According to the NCDHHS Division of Public Health, from 2017 through 2021 the statewide average for medication and drug overdose deaths was 27.6 per 100,000 residents, while Guilford County’s average was 29.6 per 100,000 residents.
The opioid epidemic continues to devastate North Carolina, where five (5) people die from opioid overdoses every day. Researchers examined rates of fatal drug overdose among justice-involved (currently incarcerated) individuals in North Carolina and found opioid overdose mortality rates more than 40 times higher than the general population. Those rates were highest during the first two (2) weeks following release from custody. The Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) Grant through the NC Department of Public Safety (NCDPS) was established to assist county Sheriff's Offices with combating this crisis in their detention centers.
The average daily population in the Greensboro Detention Center is 650, while the average in High Point is 250. On average, these combined sites have thirty (30) people a day on a Clinical Opioid Withdrawal protocol. Currently, at admission inmates are screened for medical, mental health, drug and alcohol use history. We work to ensure that i...
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