HARRISBURG (Newsradio 1020 KDKA) — On Thursday, Governor Tom Wolf signed another renewal of the opioid disaster declaration, an order that was originally signed in January 2018.
The most recent extension makes for the 12th renewal of the disaster declaration.
In essence, the declaration allows for softer regulations and speedier aid and initiatives to serve those with an opioid-use disorder.
"We must continue to fight both the COVID-19 pandemic and the opioid epidemic in our commonwealth, and I am grateful to the dedicated team of the Opioid Command Center for its commitment to fighting the opioid epidemic even among challenging circumstances."
The work that is enabled by this declaration is vital to saving the lives of so many Pennsylvanians, providing education and treatment, and advancing initiatives across the state to continue to battle this epidemic. This work is no less important during COVID; we can and are fighting both the pandemic and the epidemic," Wolf said.
The hope is that the continuation of the declaration would allow for "redirection and reorganization of commonwealth resources to align programs from multiple agencies to work together to mitigate the opioid crisis, its causes and effects."
There have been three primary focuses on curbing opioid usage in the commonwealth: prevention, rescue and treatment.
Over the past several years, the declaration has allowed for a number of advancements on the opioid mitigation front:
1. Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine signed an updated naloxone standing order permitting community-based organizations to provide naloxone by mail.
2. The Prescription Drug Monitoring Program has reduced opioid prescriptions by 47 percent and has virtually eliminated doctor shopping.
3. The number of people receiving high dosages of opioids (defined as greater than 90 morphine milligram equivalents per day) has dropped 57 percent since the PDMP launched in August 2016.
4. The Opioid Data Dashboard and Data Dashboard 2.0 has provided public-facing data regarding prevention, rescue and treatment.
5. 11 Pennsylvania Coordinated Medication Assisted Treatment (PacMAT) programs are serving as part of a hub-and-spoke model to provide evidence-based treatment to people where they live, with just under $26 million dedicated into the centers.
6. More than 45 Centers of Excellence, administered by the Department of Human Services, provide coordinated, evidence-based treatment to people with an opioid use disorder covered by Medicaid. The COEs have treated more than 32,500 people since first launching in 2016.
7. The waiver of birth certificate fees for those with opioid use disorder has helped close to 5,300 people, enabling easier entry into recovery programs.
8. A standing order signed by Dr. Rachel Levine in 2018 allowed EMS to leave behind more than 2,400 doses of naloxone.
9. Education has been provided to more than 7,000 prescribers through either online or face-to-face education.
10. The Get Help Now Hotline received close to 42,622 calls, with more than half of all callers connected directly to a treatment provider.
11. A body scanner pilot project was successful in reducing overdoses and violent crime in a number of facilities. Body scanners are in place in more than 30 locations and are currently being expanded to additional facilities.
12. Education and training on opioids have been provided to schools. Future plans are in place to make opioid education a standard component of school-based training.
"The opioid crisis continues to affect our loved ones, our communities and our state for those with the disease of addiction," Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said.
"Renewing the disaster declaration allows us to continue our efforts to ensure that we are helping those in need. Recovery works, and treatment is possible for those with this disease."
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