Dallas County's ongoing opioid crisis continues to worsen, new report says
DALLAS - A comprehensive just-released report shows critical needs in Dallas County to address the ongoing opioid crisis.
The Dallas County Health and Human Services and the Recovery Resource Council published a report that shows trends around opioid overdose continue to go in the wrong direction.
Hospitals across the county continue to see more opioid overdose patients in emergency.
Becky Tinney with the Recovery Resource Council says it’s causing an opioid crisis in Dallas County.
"It's been a long one, and we've made improvements. But we are still absolutely in the midst of a crisis," she said.
The 2024 Dallas County Community Health Needs Assessment found:
- Non-fatal overdoses nearly doubled from 2018 to 2023
- No inpatient facilities for teens under 18
- overdose deaths continue to rise
"In 2018, it was about 11.4% of all of our opioid-related poisoning deaths in the DFW metroplex were related to fentanyl," explained DCHHS Director Dr. Philip Huang. "And that rose to 20.5% in 2022.
"We've seen it show up in cocaine, in meth. We've even had isolated incidents where there's been traces found in marijuana," Tinney said.
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Lori Lynn Armstrong battled opioid addiction for 10 years. She was hooked on prescription medications after a legitimate injury.
"I have a bachelor’s and master’s in molecular biology. And then I got a master’s in counseling psychology. Then I became a drug addict," she said.
Armstrong has written a book titled "Someday I Will Not Be Ashamed." She wants people to know there are folks battling addiction who might not look how you've imagined.
"What I would advocate more for is easier access to treatment for people who are having a problem detoxing from opioids and to have it be not anything that will be treated shamefully or mark someone for the rest of their lives," she said.
The Recovery Resource Council is a non-profit providing treatment and recovery services.
"Probably more than anything right now, we need a priority on mental health," Tinney said. "And we need access to treatment — not just substance use treatment but also access to treatment for mental health and behavioral health disorders."
The hope is monies that have come from settlements with pharmaceuticals over opioids will bring the resources needed to fund recovery for many.
"One of the main reasons behind conducting the needs assessment was to help Dallas County, specifically make some good decisions around how to best utilize that funding," Tinney said.
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"This report really shows the critical need, what we need with this ongoing opioid crisis that we're seeing in Dallas County," Dr. Huang said.
Another big gap in resources is that there are no facilities meeting equipped to meet the needs of Spanish-only speakers who need help, treatment and counseling to overcome opioid addiction.