Sacramento County sees massive drop in fentanyl-related deaths this year compared to 2023
SACRAMENTO — Sacramento County is reporting a staggering drop in the number of fentanyl-related deaths so far this year when compared to all of 2023.
A report out Tuesday shows a 56% percent drop with the Sacramento County Coroner's office reporting 180 fentanyl-related deaths through November 2024 compared to 406 in all of 2023.
The county says it doesn't necessarily mean fewer people are using the deadly drug, but that a combination of treatment, prevention, education, and outreach efforts between several agencies seems to be making a huge difference.
Sacramento Fire Captain Justin Sylvia is part of one of those agencies credited with helping to tackle the opioid crisis in the region.
"It's pretty shocking, we're still seeing an alarming rate of overdose calls that we do respond to every single day," Sylvia said. "I think a lot of thought has changed of what we actually are going to do once we get there."
Sacramento Fire Department launched the Street Overdose Response Team, or SORT, which includes a vehicle team of two firefighter paramedics launching into the community with a focus on the unhoused. Sylvia said they make up a significant number of overdose emergency calls.
"While they're engaging with them, they're leaving Narcan behind," Sylvia said. "So just getting boots on the ground into these unhoused communities and just trying to deter them, or if they do have some type of overdose, they can handle it themselves."
Another huge portion of their outreach efforts includes giving them informational pamphlets on what they can do to find treatment or get help.
The report from the county credited a number of other organizations with their help in getting to the root of the overdose crisis including, Sacramento County's Sheriff's Office and Probation Department and the Sacramento City Police Department and the Sac Metro Fire's Mobile Medicine Teams.
Officials say that while the numbers are encouraging, they are still seeing an alarming number of calls and reports of emergencies when it comes to fentanyl.
Officials expect the number of overdose deaths to rise before we reach the New Year, especially because the holidays can be a time of struggle with numbers of emergency calls spiking from people turning to drugs when experiencing depression or anxiety.
"You never know. It's being brought in from so many different communities. It's still very dangerous. We still want to be very mindful," Sylvia said.