Paul Bass Photo
Emergency crews tend to poisoned drug users on the Green last Aug. 15.
(Opinion)—Today marks the one-year anniversary of a mass-K2-poisoning in a 24-hour period on the New Haven Green. Within days, national media swarmed the Green, hijacked the conversation and used our city to sensationalize the drug overdose epidemic sweeping our country.
Substance use has been the focus of recent national attention because of the opioid crisis, where hundreds of thousands of people have been impacted by drug use, overdose and death. But substance use issues are broader than opioids and have been a persistent feature of urban centers like our city for decades. The K2 poisoning that happened on the Green was something that many could have anticipated, given the years of history of open-air drug dealing and use, but it also provides us an opportunity to have a meaningful conversation about how to address substance use in a productive and compassionate way.
Unfortunately, in the immediate aftermath of the K2 poisonings, the city chose a path not based on a full understanding of the problems and a comprehensive approach to solving them. Within days, Mayor Harp publicly and privately blasted the APT Foundation (the progressive, evidence-based opioid treatment program in New Haven) even though the poisonings were caused by synthetic marijuana and the majority of victims had no connection to APT. Shortly after, the Mayor enacted the Overdose Response Working Group, whose very role is more focused on addressing the symptoms of the problem, rather than their roots. And while we have not had such an extreme incident such as the K2 poisonings in the last year, a short walk across the Green on any day will highlight that we have not come far in addressing the underlying challenges related to substance use and treatment.
The fact is: opioid use disorder and other substance use disorders are a national and regional emergency. More than 1,000 people died from opioid overdose in Connecticut in 2017 — nearly five times higher than just five years ago. This is nothing new to New Haven. Our community has been dealing with the consequences of substance use and addiction since long before the talk of the overdose epidemic that was largely fueled by white suburban deaths. Rather than criminalize addiction, we need to make a deep investment in addressing the root of the problem.
Dealing with our city-wide substance use issues starts with leadership. We must not demonize or marginalize residents who are in most need of support. Unfortunately, access to treatment at many clinics favor those who are wealthy and white. As your mayor, I will be front and center on this issue, standing with our first responders, health professionals, addiction experts, people with lived experience and others to make sure those dealing with substance use disorders get the help they need to recover and become productive members of society. Most importantly, I will get everyone on the same page to deliver outcomes instead of merely providing services. Substance use is clearly also a health and income inequality issue. In recent months I’ve shared my strategy for creating jobs, improving our education and health systems and making New Haven a better place to live, work and visit.
I propose a multi-pronged strategy for addressing substance use disorder treatment in New Haven:
• Increase treatment options: Essentially all licensed healthcare providers can prescribe opioids but only a minority can prescribe buprenorphine (trade name Suboxone), one of three FDA approved options to treat opioid use disorder. As it currently stands, certification (through a waiver) can be cumbersome and time consuming for providers. The city should be working with our local hospital system and community health centers to support health providers to get waivers to prescribe buprenorphine, with the ultimate goal of making this medication more readily available through local doctors. I will also work with Attorney General William Tong to support the Mainstreaming Addiction Treatment Act, which he has signed on to and which would eliminate this waiver as a barrier to increasing access to buprenorphine.
• More regional treatment sites: People receiving methadone treatment for opioid use disorder are oftentimes high-functioning and may need treatment for much of the rest of their life. Currently many need to travel to or through New Haven to get this treatment. Giving people an option to get treatment closer to home will increase the probability that they do so and allow people to spend less time traveling for treatment and, instead, more time living productive lives.
• Treatment with no strings: We must encourage the state to require opioid use disorder treatment sites to provide treatment regardless of drug screening results — including for marijuana. Many treatment facilities currently do not provide treatment to individuals caught using other illegal substances. This creates several problems. First, people who do not qualify but are motivated enough to receive treatment must travel to facilities in New Haven to get it. Others are forced into the streets and often return to opioid use, far from the services and professionals they need to get better. Treatment facilities need to actively engage with all populations instead of pushing people away.
• Use transit to facilitate better treatment access: It’s critical that we have bus stops on the Green, but the number of transfers creates an unsafe environment and makes it too easy for drug dealers to hide among waiting bus riders. Simply moving stops, as the mayor proposes, will not address the problem. Creating an indoor transit station will provide a safe, climatized and supervised environment – a solution that most other towns and cities across the country have implemented. We also need to work with regional transportation officials to update schedules and routes, specifically adding more direct lines between other towns and the North Haven APT facility so people can get treatment and hold down full time jobs. Funneling everyone in the region through the New Haven Green for transfers is not sustainable.
• Strong partnerships: Rather than demonize treatment facilities like APT, we need to work with progressive treatment providers in the region. While APT has work to do addressing issues around its facility in Hill North and playing a more collaborative role with nearby residents, APT has a strong history of progressive and evidence-based treatment. We should work hand-in-hand with them rather than alienating and publicly rebuking them.
• Consider staffing a drop-in center: Specific to the K2 poisonings, but relevant to other drug use, we should explore partnering with a local health care provider to staff a drop-in center where people have access to medical attention, monitoring, and recovery resources. K2 is an inexpensive drug, and like other street-drugs, is wholly unregulated, which increases the risks and costs of contaminated or “bad” batches. Drop-in centers have had success in other cities. Mayor Harp rightfully introduced the idea in the weeks after last year’s K2 incident but has not shared with the public whether this concept has been explored and thoroughly considered for New Haven.
• Hold pharmaceutical companies accountable: I will also work with Attorney General William Tong to hold pharmaceutical companies and others who prey on addicts accountable for their actions. Unfortunately, earlier this year, a judge threw out the lawsuit filed by New Haven and other Connecticut cities because the plaintiffs bungled their complaint. The judge even chastised the city for not developing a theory on causation before it filed suit. This was a winnable case, and Mayor Harp should have implemented a well thought out and strategic lawsuit based on successful lawsuits in other states.
It’s time we tackle the substance use problem and overdose epidemic in a compassionate, outcome-focused manner. We need to get people the help and services they need to get better. So many cities have dynamic, active public spaces that are sources of positive energy and community engagement. We must push back on the idea that the Green cannot be anything more than it is. We need to continue to make New Haven a wonderful place to live, work and play.
Justin Elicker (pictured) is a candidate for mayor.
In sum: continue to work with regional and local partners; convince the state to step up with more money and wiser transit plans; convince our suburban neighbors to build and fund treatment centers for THEIR residents.
Pretty words, Mr. Elicker. Nothing novel here. Tell us what you will do differently to convince regional partners and the State to step up.