Just weeks after we told you about an opioid abuse coalition being formed by Nevada and Placer Counties, it’s received a statewide honor. Nevada County Health Officer Ken Cutler says the award is called the “Best Collaboration Between/Among Local Health Departments”….

click to listen to Dr. Ken Cutler

According to the latest numbers, from 2013, Nevada County had the fifth-highest rate in California for non-fatal emergency room visits related to opioids. But Cutler says visits are now declining. He also says progress on reducing the problem can be difficult to track…

click to listen to Dr. Ken Cutler

Cutler says training of doctors is also being stepped up, to reduce over-prescribing opioids, which are painkillers. The antidote Narcan is also now available without a prescription. The Coalition is also targeting four other separate, but closely-related constituencies with education and outreach: schools and community-based organization, drug treatment providers, law enforcement and first responders, and local media. Also earlier this year, the Western Sierra Medical Clinic received a two-year federal grant that establishes the community’s first medication-assisted treatment program and a safe, effective strategy.