‘Saves’ Show Progress in War on Drugs, Overdoses Down 9%, Prosecutor Says

CREST HAVEN – It was a battle report of sorts, about skirmishes won in the trench war against drugs in Cape May County; no peace is in sight.  
Prosecutor Robert Taylor, like a battlefield general armed with statistics, reported “good news” May 24 in the local fight against heroin overdoses.
He broke the news at a press briefing convened at his Justice Way headquarters. Joining Taylor were police, government and faith-based partners enlisted in the ongoing campaign for bodies and minds, free of opiates.
“Heroin overdoses were down 9 percent in Cape May County year to year,” said Taylor. Overdoses peaked at 121 in 2014, declined to 110 in 2015 and, as of the year’s first quarter, “we are down 25 percent” from the prior year, he added.
“We recognize there will be spikes up and down ticks as we go along,” he said. The pipeline of heroin stems mainly from Philadelphia or Mexico, said Taylor.
Life-claiming heroin overdoses that did not take a life were termed “saves” by Taylor. They increased from 13 in 2014 when Narcan was first administered by law enforcement agents to 60 in 2015. He credited the police departments as they are first responders.
Taylor cited the Pills to Heroin program that has been presented at high and middle schools 33 times. It has also been presented to AARP groups as many grandparents are involved with grandchildren. 
Reluctant parents, unwilling to venture to a school for the program can, as of May 24, visit the Prosecutor’s Office website to experience it in the privacy of their home.
Faith-based organizations, such as C.U.R.E. based at The Lighthouse Church in Burleigh, and ASAP, also based at that church, are making an impact where government entities cannot.
Robin Hetherington, who heads C.U.R.E. (Christians United for Recovery), said since 2014 “nearly 400 people were aided with 60 percent of those in recovery or still recovering.”
The group of 80 volunteers assists those with substance abuse disorders. No government funds are received.
“CURE volunteers have personally experienced the drug epidemic in Cape May County and are trying to help others recover,” Hetherington said.
“Through these teams, we are removing the stumbling blocks for individuals and families,” Hetherington said.
Other denominations have joined including Roman Catholics, Baptists, and Methodists, said Sueanne Agger, who heads ASAP.
Agger has aided those in the hospital, helping 88 to recover to date. They included 34 from heroin, three from cocaine, four from Percocet, one from LSD and 46 with alcohol-related issues. “We can help people before it gets to an overdose,” said Agger. The group is allowed into the maternity ward, she added.
Freeholder Kristine Gabor, who oversees the county’s health and human services departments, lauded ongoing efforts of community partners that include Cape Assist and Cape Counseling.
In the year’s first quarter, 23 individuals have been placed in detoxification or rehabilitation, Gabor reported. “We are quickly running out of funds,” she said.
Regarding outpatient treatment, Gabor noted a decline of opiates as a “drug of choice” listed by young people in treatment. She said that number was 25 percent in 2010, rose to 27 percent in 2012, and “As of yesterday (May 23) 10 percent of young people in treatment listed opiates as their “drug of choice,” Gabor added. “So there is a decrease,” she noted.
Regarding local in-patient treatment centers and the lack thereof, Gabor said, “It is not necessarily a county issue, it’s a statewide issue; there is a problem statewide. We need the state to come forward and help us with the process of paying for more beds for people who need long-term treatment or recovery; outpatient treatment is not the only answer.
“I’ve been in meetings with other county officials where people have said they have buildings available and asked for organizations to come forward and establish a public-private partnership for long-term inpatient rehab, and sometimes the answer is that the companies are not interested in coming to the state of New Jersey.
“So there is a state issue not necessarily a county-local issue, but it’s affecting all of us. We need to get our state legislators involved, find out what the issue is, why people are hesitant to come here, and figure out a way to fix that,” Gabor concluded.
“We cannot arrest our way out of the problem,” said Chief Christopher Leusner of Middle Township Police Department and president of the Cape May County Chiefs of Police Association.
He, too, cited the Pills to Heroin program as informing children in sixth, seventh and eighth grades to the potential hazards of drug use.
After Narcan saves a heroin user from dying, Leusner cited the ASAP volunteers who “Go into the hospital to try to get them help.”
From a chief’s perspective, watching substance abusers “bouncing to municipal court” meant something had to change. Leusner noted fellow chiefs realized the earlier the intervention those individuals received, the greater was their likelihood of “putting a dent in this epidemic.”
Richard Stepura, interim executive county superintendent, reinforced the importance of getting students information about prescription drug abuse that leads to heroin use and addiction. Using a variety of media, including school assemblies, backpack fliers and, “Soon a banner plane,” Stepura said the message is reinforced concerning illegal drug use.
“We all agree that when it comes to this issue that we are discussing today that ignorance is not bliss, ignorance can definitely be deadly, and knowledge is indeed power, and it is the power to make good choices and to use good judgment,” Stepura said.