Shawnee County had 1,399 overdoses in 2023. Here's how leaders may address drug addiction.
Shawnee County in 2023 saw 1,399 overdoses, which included eight fatalities.
The three highest overdoses were unreported substances, methamphetamine and alcohol, said Craig Barnes, who is the Shawnee County Health Department Community Health Outreach and Planning division manager.
The breakdown of Shawnee County overdoses
Out of the 1,399 overdoses reported in 2023, 994 didn't report a substance. Barnes said the substance reporting is a newer practice that wasn't used for all of 2023.
Of the 405 overdoses that were reported:
Methamphetamines accounted for 185 of the overdoses.
Alcohol saw 168 overdoses.
Benzodiazepine contributed to 24 overdoses.
Fentanyl had 20 overdoses.
Oxycodone had the smallest rate of overdoses with 8.
Barnes said the 2022 data is unavailable due to an error in the tracking system. However, there were seven overdose deaths in Shawnee County in 2022.
Naloxone is a medicine that quickly helps reverse the effects of an overdose. The common brands are Narcan and Evzio. The medicine was administered to 125 of the overdose cases in the county.
In 2024, there have been 214 overdoses in Shawnee County. These overdoses aren't yet broken down by substance.
Craig said all data for Shawnee County was reported by the Kansas Board of EMS and collected from the Overdose Detection Mapping Application Program.
What's the community doing?
Topeka residents advocated for a good Samaritan law to be established here in Kansas. This is a law that shields those who call in an overdose to 911. Kansas is one of two states that has yet to establish this law.
Over the past couple of years, state Legislature and local organizations have worked to make Narcan and fentanyl testing strips more readily available.
What are local governments doing?
The county has received $475,435 in settlement money, public information officer Amanda Monhollon said.
As previously reported, the $26 billion settlement was with pharmaceutical distributors Cardinal Health Inc., McKesson Corporation and AmerisourceBergen Corporation, as well as drug manufacturer Johnson & Johnson.
By the end of January, the city had received $374,339 and doesn't know how much it will receive in total, city interim communications co-director Taylor Bugg said. The amount is separate from the settlement funds received by the county because the city participated as a nonlitigation entity.
Bugg said there is no set timeline for when the city will decide how to spend the money.
Federal regulation states the funds must be used for addiction intervention and prevention.
Topeka's Valeo Behavioral Health Care — which offers mental health, substance abuse and problem gambling addictions treatment — has been presenting to the city and the county possible uses for the funding.
"I really think that the county should be looking at — and they are — a range of possible ideas, services or programs that would meet some needs," Valeo CEO Bill Persinger said. "You know, one funding source can't solve all of the needs or can't fill all the unmet needs, and these dollars are one-time dollars.
"I mean when they're gone, they're gone, right? So we want to make sure we put them to good use."
Persinger said some of the suggested options are programs that raise awareness about fentanyl or recovery services for those fighting addiction.
He said local governments and Valeo are in the beginning process of determining how to use the funds.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Topeka and Shawnee County to distribute funds from opioid settlement
