Cincinnati area reports progress against deaths from overdoses

Associated Press

CINCINNATI

Authorities say anti-overdose efforts are making progress in the Ohio county that includes Cincinnati.

The Hamilton County Heroin Coalition gave a report Wednesday on the state of the crisis. Not all cases are cleared yet, but coroner Dr. Lakshmi Sammarco has recorded 440 overdose deaths for 2018, down from 570 in 2017.

Health officials, police and local government officials say addiction treatment is up, prevention efforts are moving ahead and there is more accessibility than ever to sterile syringes and the overdose-reversal drug naloxone.

However, Hamilton County Commissioner and coalition leader Denise Driehaus says while the trends are positive, a bad batch of drugs on the street could spark more overdoses.

Ohio has been one of the hardest-hit states in recent years for overdose deaths.