OVERDOSE DEATHS TRY RIO ARRIBA

ESPANOLA- More than two years after Gov. Bill Richardson demanded
results from drug treatment providers in Rio Arriba County, the
overdose death rate has remained constant and the state can't say
whether treatment programs are working.

While Health Secretary Michelle Lujan Grisham acknowledges that the
state still doesn't have sufficient data to determine whether Rio
Arriba County's drug treatment programs are effective, she said
progress has nevertheless been made.

The most visible sign, said Lujan Grisham, is the fact that treatment
providers, consumers and others on the front lines of the drug war
are now working together. That's a far cry from two years ago when
they couldn't even stand to be in the same room, the secretary said
during an interview Wednesday following a gubernatorial town hall
meeting in Espanola.

Rio Arriba County has long led the state and the nation in per capita
deaths due to illicit drugs, primarily heroin. The Office of the
Medical Investigator has yet to publish its annual report on 2005
drug deaths, but last year's report showed that 16 people fatally
overdosed in Rio Arriba County in 2004. According to OMI, 15 Rio
Arriba County residents died of drug overdoses in 2003.

In August 2003, Richardson pledged additional funding to drug
treatment providers working to combat Rio Arriba County's pervasive
drug problem. But along with the money came the warning that future
funding would be tied to results.

Progress Report

The governor reiterated the expectation that treatment providers
produce results after restoring funding cuts for the programs in July
2004. On Wednesday, he traveled to Espanola, in part, for a progress report.

Among the comments he heard from service providers is that they still
don't have enough money and that addicts who want help are having to
wait a long time for services.

Despite the complaints, Lujan Grisham said treatment programs are
providing services to more addicts.

The secretary said that more money has been poured into prevention
and into school programs, and that overdose deaths across the state
are down. And she said data are being compiled that, in the near
future, will enable the state to determine how successful treatment
programs are, tracking things such as relapses.

Richardson, meanwhile, pledged continued support for drug treatment
programs, though he reiterated his demand for accountability.

"You have got to keep working together," the governor told an
overflow crowd of treatment providers, recovering addicts and other
community members packed into the Rio Arriba County Commission chambers.

"We've made progress on the working together thing ... ," he said. "I
want to increase funding, but I want results. I want accountability.
But I don't want more buildings."

Richardson said he wants to invest in programs that help people.

Although the Rio Arriba area isn't experiencing a major problem with
methamphetamine, the governor promised a meth treatment program for the north.

"I want to see a meth treatment program for the north for men and
women, and I will fund it," Richardson said. "I will make it work. I
want to see it in my budget next year ... Meth is our greatest killer."

Karen Meador, director of the health department's Behavioral Services
Division, said meth in fact isn't a major problem in the Rio Arriba
County area, and Lauren Reichelt, director of health and human
services for Rio Arriba County, agreed.

"In all the data I looked at, meth just doesn't pop up," she said,
following the meeting. "What really pops up is alcohol and heroin."
The major problem, she added, is drug mixing, which often leads to overdoses.

Reichelt told the governor the high density of alcohol outlets in Rio
Arriba County, and in Espanola in particular, is a major factor in
overdose deaths. There are 54 outlets in the county, which has a
population of about 41,000, she said. According to Reichelt, 24 of
those outlets are in Espanola, which should have only four based on
the state quota of one alcohol outlet per 2,000 residents. The state
grandfathered in existing liquor establishments when it established its quota.

'It's Up To Us'

According to Reichelt, Office of the Medical Investigator data from
1991 to 2001 show that all accidental poisoning deaths, which include
fatal overdoses, involved multiple drugs. In that same period,
between 60 percent and 78 percent of all accidental poisoning deaths
involved alcohol.

"I don't think we're going to bring down the overdose death rate
until we address drug mixing," she said. She added that during the
same period, she couldn't find a single death attributable to heroin alone.

Reichelt also pointed to progress in combating the drug problem over
the last several years.

"We have created a continuum of treatment services," she said.

But not everyone agreed. Deborah Fickling, who identified herself as
a person in recovery, told Richardson that there isn't a continuum of
services to help addicts recover, and she contended that the millions
of dollars being pumped into the programs aren't being spent wisely.

Clarissa Duran, a social worker with the New Mexico Human Services
Department, called for community members to rise up against the drug
dealers. She said government alone can't combat the problem.

"It's up to us to take back the streets of our community and do
something about this," she said. "Don't sit there, all of you, and
pretend this is going to go away. This is our community."

Secretary Lujan Grisham, meanwhile, pointed to a success in the
effort to lower the drug overdose death rate.

She said there's solid evidence that the Narcan Program for heroin
addicts is saving lives. According to statistics released in July by
the Health Department, 116 overdoses had been reversed through
Narcan, an opioid antagonist that can restore normal breathing to
heroin overdose victims or those who have overdosed on opiates like morphine.

Lujan Grisham also discussed the possibility of instituting some sort
of amnesty program for addicts who call 911 to report an overdose.
She said that while the legalities haven't been investigated, such a
program could reduce the number of overdose deaths since addicts
often don't want to call 911 for fear of being arrested.