A record 621 people have died of overdoses in San Francisco so far this year, a shocking number that far exceeds the 173 deaths from COVID-19 that the city has recorded to date.
The crisis unleashed by the powerful pain reliever fentanyl could have been much worse had naloxone not been used nearly 3,000 times from January to early November to save the life of someone on the verge of death, the San Francisco newspaper reported . Chronicle on Saturday.
The data reflects the reported number of times people use the drug Narcan for the Project for Overdose Prevention and Education (DOPE), a city-funded program that monitors San Francisco Authorities’ response in case of overdose, or replenish your supplies.
DOPE project officials point out that since the figures are self-reported by those involved, the cases are most likely more in reality.
Last year, 441 people died of overdoses – a 70% increase compared to 2018 – and 2,610 possible overdoses were avoided using Narcan, a drug commonly injected through the nasal passages to reverse an opioid overdose, according to data the city forensics office and the DOPE project.
The crisis is getting worse as fentanyl, which can be 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, flooded the city’s supply, the paper said.
In addition, the coronavirus pandemic has impacted local authorities’ services such as housing and treatment, leaving many people dependent on others for help in case they overdose using it on their own.
While about 40% of deaths occurred in the Tenderloin and South of Market neighborhoods near the city center, data from authorities showed that the epidemic has reached all parts of the city.
Many of the people overdosed in apartment buildings in deprived neighborhoods and in city-funded hotel rooms for the homeless. Others died on the sidewalks, alleys and parks in different parts of the city.