Fighting substance abuse in King County

By: Anne Frances Owen ~ 1/4/2023

Brad Finegood, strategic advisor for public health in Seattle and King County, spoke to club members about increased substance abuse in our communities and, specifically, what makes fentanyl so much more dangerous than other illegal drugs. For example:

• Products are much more prevalent and cheaper ($3-5/pill) than even a few years ago.
• Tablets look very similar to those a doctor, a hospital, or a pharmacy might give you.
• Anyone (including a kid) who wants to experiment with drugs perceives them as safer than substances that require injection through a needle.

Unlike medications from legal sources, street drugs are 98% likely to contain fentanyl, which is 50x more powerful than heroin and 100x more powerful than morphine. Finegood also pointed out that virtually all fatal overdoses are accidental and encourages everyone to understand the signs of an overdose and have appropriate supplies onhand to counteract the danger.