RI Scores Success In Battling Opiod Crisis At ACI: JAMI

CRANSTON, RI — Prison may have saved the lives of inmates who did time at the Adult Correctional Institutions and participated in an addiction treatment program. According to a study by Brown University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers, that treatment program is "linked to a 61 percent drop in post-incarceration overdose deaths."

In plain English, Joseph Wendelken, spokesman for the state health department, said, "The study is about people not overdosing once they are released." Their risk of dying is high, he indicated. Although they're not using drugs in prison, they may not stay clean once they're free.

"People will sometimes be using drugs and then get incarcerated and then start using drugs again after they are released. Their overdose rate is very high post-incarceration because people have diminished tolerances."

The study, which compared the first six months of the new program with the six months prior to implementation, was published Wednesday (Feb. 14) in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Psychiatry, he said. Gov. Gina Raimondo also announced the results Wednesday morning.

“Our number-one goal in fighting the opioid overdose crisis is simple: save lives,” she said. “But to do that, we have to use every tool in our toolbox. Our data told us that too many Rhode Islanders leave prison and overdose. So, we took action, and created this program with the Department of Corrections. Now, we are beginning to see results. We still have a lot of work to do, but this study lets us know that we are starting to move in the right direction.”

The treatment is described as "medication assisted" and it was supervised by Dr. Jennifer Clarke, Medical Programs Director at RIDOC. She was also a co-author of the study.

“While comprehensive treatment for opiate use disorders has not been the traditional role of correctional facilities, we have shown that it is feasible,” said Dr. Clarke. “Providing treatment saves lives and helps people become productive members of society, positively engages them with their communities and families which makes for healthier and safer communities.”

Specifically, the number who died from overdoses dropped from 26 in the first half of 2016 to nine in the first half of 2017.

"That decrease contributed to an overall 12 percent reduction in overdose deaths throughout Rhode Island during the same first six months of 2017, compared to the first six months of 2016," he said. "Through the first 10 months of 2017, there has been an overall seven percent reduction in overdose deaths compared to the first 10 months of 2016. (The 2017 overdose numbers are not yet finalized.)"

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