Corey Davis

The opioid overdose epidemic is a continuing public health crisis. When we began tracking laws aimed to increase access to naloxone in late 2012, they existed in only eight states. As of July 1, 2017, every state and Washington D.C. has passed at least one law increasing access to naloxone—a remarkably rapid progression for public health legislation.

The recently released Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics supplemental issue features articles authored by presenters at the Public Health Law Conference in Washington D.C. Corey Davis, deputy director at the Network for Public Health Law – Southeastern Region Office, co-authored the article, “Action, Not Rhetoric, Needed to Reverse the Opioid Overdose Epidemic.” In the following Q&A, Corey discusses his article and how it addresses a critical public health issue.

In response to the public health risks posed by expired and leftover medicines, federal law was enacted to encourage the establishment of voluntary drug take-back programs. This resource provides an overview of these programs.

In 2015, 33,091 Americans died of accidental opioid overdose, that’s more deaths than from car crashes or guns. Early interventions to prevent and treat substance use disorder and opioid use disorder, save lives and resources. Although access to evidence-based prevention and treatment remains far below where it should be, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act have been instrumental in improving it.

In Colorado, 899 people died of drug-related overdoses in 2014 -- most of these deaths were caused by opioids. This fact sheet provides an overview of Colorado's law to increase access to naloxone, an opioid overdose antidote.

A public health professional contacted the Network to ask if the Network could provide them with data use agreement templates for use by local public health authorities?

With the signing of the South Carolina Overdose Prevention Act on June 3, 2014, the state made it more likely that naloxone will be available when and where it is needed. This fact sheet explains the provisions of the Overdose Prevention Act.

This fact sheet provides information on Pennsylvania's Act 139, which provides limited immunity to overdose victims and bystanders that seek medical help, and increases accesss to naloxone, a drug that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.