Fentanyl surpasses heroin as deadliest drug on L.I.

Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid commonly used for surgery and for treating cancer pain, has surpassed heroin as the deadliest drug on Long Island and is now the leading cause of overdose deaths, health officials said last month.

The drug, which is legally prescribed as lozenges or transdermal patches, killed 220 people in Nassau and Suffolk counties in 2016 — 39 people in Nassau alone, according to The New York Times.

Fentanyl is a powerful and highly addictive synthetic opioid that is 80 to 100 times more potent than morphine.

Steven Dodge, founder of the Long Island-based SLATE Project — Saving Lives from Addiction through Treatment and Education — said one of the reasons that fentanyl has caused more overdoses than heroin recently is because dealers have bought and distributed heroin that is often laced with fentanyl, sometimes without the user’s knowledge.

“Nobody wakes up in the morning and says, ‘Hey, I’m going to do heroin today,’” Dodge said. “It always starts out with prescription painkillers.”

“It’s legitimate people that were hurt and need pain killers that were cut off prior to their injuries being healed,” added Lt. Mark Stark, a spokesman for the Long Beach Police Department.

Although the department is familiar with the spreading use of fentanyl, Stark said police have yet to see many cases in Long Beach and no related arrests have been made.

“We’re doing our part by trying to stay on top and being as helpful as we can,” Stark said. “Every officer in the Long Beach Police Department is trained in the usage of Narcan kits.”

The Police Department isn’t alone — Long Beach AWARE, a nonprofit group committed to fighting alcohol and substance abuse among young people, also recognizes the issue.

“We need to stop calling it a heroin epidemic and really go back into what it is, which is an opioid epidemic — this encompasses both the fentanyl and the heroin,” said Judi Vining, executive director of Long Beach AWARE. “What happens is it gets labeled as, ‘OK, at least somebody I know isn’t doing heroin.’ It’s that stigma.”

Overdoses caused by synthetic opioids like fentanyl increased by 72.2 percent nationwide between 2014 and 2015, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — the most drastic surge in United States drug history.

Last year, State Sen. Todd Kaminsky voted for a package of legislation that was signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo aimed at combating the heroin and opioid epidemic in New York, and co-sponsored legislation aimed at tackling substance abuse, from prevention to treatment and recovery.

“I’ve been holding forums all across our district talking to young people about it with experts from all different types of fields,” Kaminsky said. “We’re in the midst of an acute crisis and I’ve talked to too many families who have been shattered by it.”

He said addressing the problem requires a multi-pronged approach, including greater access to treatment, educating young people and stepping up prosecution of those who are knowingly distributing the dangerous substances.
Kaminsky also voted for a bill which increases criminal penalties for the sale of a fentanyl derivative and makes it a felony to knowingly and unlawfully sell a quarter ounce of the drug or more.

“I hope that we can make greater strides in Albany this year and I’m proud of the ones we’ve already made,” Kaminsky said. “We haven’t really turned the tides yet. It’s still a tremendous problem in my district and throughout the state and the country.”