Overdose deaths drop in Montgomery County. What’s behind the decline?

In Montgomery County, a significant drop in overdose deaths was reported this year.

At an October 22 meeting, Montgomery County council members responded to newly released numbers.

"There are a lot of positive components of your presentation," Gabe Albornoz of the Montgomery County Council told leaders at the Department of Health and Human Services.

"We're starting to see a downward trend in overdose deaths," Kisha Davis, MD, MPH, FAAFP told 7News.

"Our overdose deaths at the end of September, we have data. Through then [there] were 57 total overdose deaths, 35 of them were attributed to fentanyl," Davis said. "Last year, we were seeing 138 deaths. The trend is looking like we are lower than what we have been in the last five years."

We asked Davis what was behind the decline.

"One is a lot of education. The health department is partnering with the school system [and] police department. There were a number of fentanyl forums," she said. "There's also been a big effort to help the community understand Narcan, naloxone, which is a life-saving medication that can be given to stop an overdose and prevent death."