Back in June, Governor Doug Ducey declared a state of emergency concerning the state of opioid abuse in Arizona. That proclamation received a lot of attention at the time, but quickly faded into the background due to timing. Schools were letting out for summer break, families were heading off on summer vacation and temperatures began to skyrocket. In short, folks had other things on their mind.

The Fountain Hills Coalition looks to bring the issue back to the forefront in the coming months. As noted on page 1A of this week’s paper, the town’s organization dedicated to the prevention of drug abuse – particularly among youngsters – is back in full swing alongside the brand new academic year. The group is known for focusing its efforts based on the needs of the community and a direction provided by data, and data can’t be much more thorough than what has been presented by the Arizona Department of Health Services in recent months.

At azdhs.gov, they’ve managed to compile statewide opioid data in real time, and the results are pretty staggering. As of this writing, there have been 273 suspected opioid-related deaths from June 15 to Aug. 25. In that same period of time, Arizona has faced 2,138 suspected opioid overdoses and 156 cases of neonatal abstinence syndrome; babies born with possible drug-related withdrawal symptoms.

In the related story, Coalition director Shelly Mowrey offers some insight into what can be done on the personal and local level to help combat these issues, including taking advantage of the upcoming drug “take back day” on Oct. 28 and educating oneself on when and how to get help when opioid abuse is expected. The ADHS website (azdhs.gov) also offers a ton of resources worth looking into for those dealing with these types of issues or simply wanting to be prepared in case they ever arise.

As Mowrey points out, Fountain Hills is a pretty lucky community in this regard, reporting opioid deaths on the lowest end of the spectrum over the past two months. But we believe that vigilance is key in matters such as these. That willingness to take these issues seriously is why our community has not been impacted by the opioid epidemic as severely as others. We encourage our readers to continue looking after each other.