725: Baltimore Overdose Deaths, SNAP Funding Critical

JANSON SILVERS: 

This is the award-winning Public Health Review Morning Edition for Friday, August 9, 2024 I'm Janson Silvers. Now, today's news from the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials.

JOSHUA SHARFSTEIN: 

From 320 odd down to 85 up to 950, so that's what's happened over the last decade. It's a stunning increase. It's not something that we're just noticing. It's been there, really, since 2018, 2019.

SILVERS: 

Dr. Joshua Sharfstein is the former Baltimore City health commissioner. He now is a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and he's describing the roller coaster of overdose deaths in the city of Baltimore around 2010 when overdose deaths were at a low of 85 per year. Sharfstein says treatment expansion was successful.

SHARFSTEIN: 

Back in the mid 2000s we expanded access to treatment, buprenorphine, and we were able to show that as treatment went up, overdoses went down, and that kind of approach, using data, developing programs and watching them have an impact or adjusting them, is really the essence of public health.

SILVERS: 

With the drug supply being much more dangerous now, Sharfstein says it's critical to get people into treatment immediately.

SHARFSTEIN: 

So if you take a couple weeks to get into treatment, back then, the chance of dying wasn't that high and during those two weeks, but now very high. So when people show up at the emergency room, they should be started in treatment. When they show up in a drug treatment center, they should get the treatment right away.

SILVERS: 

Sharfstein says combining the tactics his administration used with the innovation of today, hopefully can make a difference.

SHARFSTEIN: 

It's really important when you're doing something new, to study it carefully and make sure that it's working as it's intended. But I think a combination of bringing old, effective strategies to scale, really pushing on them, and thinking about innovative ways to tackle a crisis, both of those have to happen.

SILVERS: 

Sharfstein is quoted in a New York Times article that dives into the situation in Baltimore. That article is in the show notes.

ASTHO's government affairs team is constantly evaluating legislation and astos Catherine Jones says right now they're focused on the 2024 Farm Bill for one specific reason.

CATHERINE JONES: 

A concern to ASTHO in particular, it contains information on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program called SNAP. And this is the largest domestic nutrition assistance program administered by USDA Food and Nutrition Services.

SILVERS: 

Jones says the SNAP program is important because food insecurity can have lasting, negative impacts on health.

JONES: 

Food insecurity can have lasting, negative, short and long term impacts on health and mental health at all ages, particularly the vulnerable ages of childhood and older adulthood. Research on the SNAP program has shown a decrease in emergency room visits and healthcare and Medicaid costs, plus improved Child Development markers.

SILVERS: 

And right now, food insecurity is trending the wrong way.

JONES: 

During COVID, a snap emergency allotments or extra benefits given every month on top of regular SNAP benefits kept four point million people above the poverty line and reduced child poverty by 10 to 14% particularly for minority groups. These allotments have ended and the cost of food has gone up, so unfortunately, we're seeing an uptick in food insecurity at the moment,

SILVERS: 

Jones stresses the importance of the Farm Bill in a blog article that is online now, you can find a link to the article in the show notes.

This weekend marks the third anniversary of this newscast, and we want to say thank you to all of our listeners and guests who have taken time out of their day to spend it with us. Stay tuned in the next few weeks to hear some testimonials about what this newscast means to public health leaders across the country. We hope you'll stick with us as we continue to provide relevant public health news each and every day.

Also today, as Hurricane Debby continues its run up the East Coast, now is a good time to refresh yourself on the best ways to respond to environmental health threats following a hurricane, astho has a blog article on the subject, and you can find that link in the show notes.

Finally, today, an ASTHO blog article also touches on infectious disease threats after a hurricane. ASTHO's O'Keyla Cooper has more.

O'KEYLA COOPER: 

An ASTHO blog article emphasizes how hurricanes heighten the risk of infectious diseases due to flooding and population displacement, health agencies are encouraged to address contaminated water risk, set up surveillance systems, vaccinate at risk populations, and communicate effectively with the public. You can find the full article linked in the show notes.

SILVERS: 

That'll do it for today. We're back on Monday morning with more ASTHO news and. Information, I'm Janson Silvers. You're listening to the award winning Public Health Review Morning Edition. Have a great weekend. You.