As the chairman of the Onondaga County Legislature Health Committee, I recently asked our health commissioner to come and present an overview of the health of Onondaga County in 2018. Dr. Indu Gupta has been diligently working with me and the Health Committee, keeping us up to speed on all that is happening around our county with regard to public health.
Her overview addressed mental health and substance abuse, including the opioid crisis. She also talked about obesity and chronic diseases, HIV/STDs, and vaccine-preventable diseases such as influenza, human papillomavirus, and measles, mumps and rubella. Dr. Gupta discussed healthy and safe environments in Onondaga County, specifically lead and water issues. She also gave us insight on the state of women’s, infants’ and children’s health.
Dr. Gupta updated us on the state of the opioid crisis in Onondaga County.
Since 2016, we have seen a drastic decrease in the number of unintended opioid deaths in our county. This is very welcome news and is attributed to the work of health care professionals and stakeholders in our community. While any death related to addiction is a tragedy, we are seeing a trending decline in the number of unintended opioid deaths. I would like to credit the education, outreach and other programs in Onondaga County for fighting so diligently for our friends, neighbors, co-workers, or family members who struggle with this disease.
In 2017, the county legislature spent $150,000 to combat the opioid crisis. This money was allocated to the Crouse Chemical Dependency Treatment Services, whose host of services has been critical in helping reduce opioid addiction.
In 2018 we have allocated $85,000 in county and state dollars to the Onondaga County Drug Task Force. This task force has been critical in continuing the battle against substance abuse in a coordinated effort.
I encourage anyone who has any questions or concerns to visit crouse.org/services/chemical-dependency-treatment-services or ongov.net/health/opioids/DrugTaskForce.html.
For more information on the opioid crisis or other public health concerns, visit the health department’s website at ongov.net/health or contact their office at 315-435-3252.
Tim Burtis represents the 3rd legislative district which includes the Town of Cicero and portions of the Town of Manlius. Tim welcomes constituent feedback; he can be reached by email at, [email protected] or by phone at 315-396-3300.
