Drug overdoses leading cause of accidental death in Travis County for third year
AUSTIN (KXAN) — For the third year in a row, drug overdoses are the leading cause of accidental death in Travis County. That was revealed by the Medical Examiner Thursday afternoon with the release of the 2023 Medical Examiner Report.
KXAN exclusively received an advanced copy.
The report shows that in 2023, 486 people died of overdoses in Travis County. That’s up from 417 people the year prior. Looking specifically at fentanyl-related deaths, there were 279 in the most recent report compared to 245 in 2022.
“The report is always a kind of grim measure of how bad the overdose crisis is in Travis County,” County Judge Andy Brown said.
While the numbers are an increase from 2022 to 2023, the percentage in which they climbed is less dramatic than it was from 2021 to 2022.
The Travis County Medical Examiner, Dr. Keith Pinckard, noted Thursday — saying the increase of fentanyl-related overdose deaths went from a more than 100% increase between 2021 and 2022 to a less than 20% increase between 2022 and 2023.
Brown contributed that to things like more access to naloxone — an overdose reversal medication — and more emphasis from the county on recovery housing.
“It’s always devastating to talk about the loss of members in our community but also we need to note that these are preventable deaths,” Phil Owen said of the report Thursday. He’s both survived an overdose, lost a son to an overdose and now works with Communities for Recovery.
Brown also said the county signed on with a group that will help it collect data on non-fatal overdoses just a couple weeks ago. That company will use EMS, Medical Examiner and self-reported data to give the county a clearer picture of the problem.
“I think once we get that data up and running we will see the ratio between overdoses that did not result in death and deaths from overdose. And I think that will really inform our public health work, whether it’s working or not,” Brown said.
Families of victims asking for more resources
We brought the numbers to Carilu Bell and Stefanie Turner, both of whom have lost sons to fentanyl and are now part of a group called Texas Against Fentanyl.
“It’s sad. It’s heartbreaking. Something should have been done a long time ago,” responded Bell, who lost her son, Casey, to fentanyl almost three years ago. We also talked to Bell when the grim fentanyl-related death data was released last year.
“This is the greatest threat on our nation, yet it’s just not understood, it’s not talked about. We need to magnify this message, magnify this voice and move faster. We need to have a COVID-like response,” Turner, the president of Texas Against Fentanyl, said.
That’s where the county is, once again, calling on state partners to help — by putting funding into education and resources and legalizing fentanyl test strips, which can help someone detect the fatal drug.
2022 REPORT: Drug overdoses leading cause of Travis County accidental deaths
“The sad thing is that we could do different things to prevent those deaths that we’re not doing at the state level and we clearly need to do more at the local level, too, to address what is the number one of cause of accidental death in Travis County again in 2023,” Brown said.
That’s something groups like Urban Alchemy, which runs the ARCH shelter downtown, says is a tool they’re using regardless. They’ve deployed a three-part strategy, which they say they’ve seen a lot of success with in their California locations.
“The education, the strips and the Narcan,” said Kevin Lee, director of operations at Urban Alchemy here in Austin. “It’s a tool that needs to be implemented.
In the meantime, the families of victims of fentanyl poisoning are asking that people in Travis County take a real hard look at these numbers, and start educating themselves on how to keep themselves and their loved ones safe.
“Talk about it. Don’t shy away from it because it could be you that is impacted like this,” Bell said.
Texas Against Fentanyl is hosting a “substance abuse and mental health” town hall Tuesday, May 28 from 10 am-noon. You can find more information about the event or learn more about the group here.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin.
