By Emily Hoeven – CalMatters
As concern over the omicron variant mounts in California — with the state’s second case confirmed Thursday in Los Angeles County — another public health crisis is lurking in plain sight: the drug epidemic.
A jaw-dropping report released Wednesday by the UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy found that nearly 1,500 people, the vast majority believed to be homeless, died on the streets of Los Angeles during the pandemic — 40 percent because of a drug or alcohol overdose. The staggering number is almost certainly an undercount, experts say.
Also Wednesday, the California Peace Coalition — a group of parents whose kids are addicted to or have died from fentanyl or other illicit drugs — held a die-in protest in the Tenderloin, calling on the state and San Francisco to shut down open-air drug markets, prosecute dealers, and place their kids in mandatory treatment. And they slammed San Francisco leaders for their response to a drug epidemic that killed 712 city residents in 2020 — nearly triple the amount of people who lost their lives to COVID-19.
Coalition: “Harm reduction initiatives like safe consumption sites and the widespread use of Narcan can’t solve the problem and haven’t been able to do so.”
The news comes about two weeks after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that more than 100,000 Americans — including about 10,000 in California — died of drug overdoses during the year-long period that ended April 2021. That’s a record high and a nearly 29 percent increase from the year before. Almost 64 percent of deaths were caused by the synthetic opioid fentanyl.
Meanwhile, meth overdose deaths skyrocketed 48 percent. A recent CNN investigation found that more Fresno County residents died of meth overdoses in 2020 than homicides or suicides; one- or two-vehicle crashes; and fire, falls and drowning combined.
Fresno County Sheriff’s Deputy Todd Burk: “You can’t live in this community and not have, at some point in your life, seen the effects of methamphetamine.”
A heart-rending, stunning Thursday story from San Francisco Chronicle columnist Heather Knight put the human toll of California’s drug crisis — and the inadequate political response that appears to be fueling it — into painfully clear focus. In May, Laurie Steves — who had already lost one of her children to a fentanyl and ketamine overdose — moved to San Francisco to try to wrest her 34-year-old daughter, Jessica DiDia, from the grasp of fentanyl and the Tenderloin. She did not succeed.
Jessica: “The city is way too easy for people with nothing to get by. That’s why I’m still here nine years later. You get by with doing drugs and suffer no consequences. I like it here.”
Let’s make sure we keep the border open so this can continue. /sarc
…. but the Biden administration says that the border is closed. So this can’t be happening!
Biden lies people die.
(cough) CHINA (cough) (cough)
(cough). Western Medicine (cough) the fractured American medical system (cough cough) your friendly local pharmacist (cough) I’ll name names (cough) John Muir Health, Kaiser, Summit Medical, Alta Bates, Stanford, UCSF, Veterans Administration (cough)
The legal drug pushers are the gateway drug, the illegal drug pushers are just servicing the contract.
With the pandemic we are forcing masks, closing businesses, etc. and trying to force vaccines.
With this epidemic we are ignoring, allowing, enabling and not forcing or enforcing anything.
Like the gal said, “…suffer no consequences. I like it here.”
Marvelous….
Sackler family has been running a pharmaceutical genocide without consequence.
Googlar I had no idea a family called Sackler was involved in this.
Googlar I saw that they over prescribe this fiasco. Who do they employ doctors or insurance company reps that cater to this activity ?
Maybe it’s the DEA fault? Just like prohibition, beer and wine consumption went down because it’s easier to smuggle whiskey.
Dude. Do drugs and die. No one cares. If you do stupid things, you deserve stupid things to happen to you. Why are we wasting money on idiots that do drugs? Let them all die; the world will be better for it.
Obviously you know nothing worth spewing here! So you think a person that makes one bad mistake and gets hooked or dies from drugs deserves it? 🤔 It’s very addictive and deadly! I have grieved with people I know who’s children including adult children have died from fentenoyl and meth or heroin. I believe you will be touched by this epidemic eventually. So you are not special. If you don’t know what your talking about in your little world and come here to be hateful. You are part of this problem! Troll on
@ Oh, please—Think about this, some overdose deaths are war veterans. The very same war veterans who fought for your right to spew such a calloused comment. Good for you to be so callused, your mother must be proud.
My mother is proud. That I am not a weak, worthless drug addict. It is a CHOICE. The only reason it was classified as a disease is to get insurance to pay for treatment. That’s it. If you still believe it is a disease, you have not read any of theliteral ton of information put out there and you parrot what your liberal masters tell you. Veterans also have a choice. Funny how that works, to accept personal responsibility for your choices. If we didn’t spend all this money on loser addicts, it would free a lot more to make the work a better place
Thank Biden for open borders
Thank Newscum for sanctuary state & city.
Hey Dems! Face the carnage you’ve created!
+1 +1 +1
And thank you Patty for spelling “Border” correctly.
Thank Biden for open borders
Thank Newscum for sanctuary state & city.
Hey Dems! Face the carnage you’ve created!
Thanks Joe!
Perhaps Doosy will ask Psaki to comment on this open border amplified phenomenon……….
I can see Newsom now, bragging about flattening the homelessness curve, failing to mention that drug deaths are driving it……..
If only we could harness this stupidity and convert it to energy………
No surprise, control that damn boarder Biden. Biden does not care about all the people he has killed, Covid, Afghanistan and Boarder Policy’s. When his time comes he will be judge by God himself and sent straight to hell.
+1
Sorry for the spelling… its Border…
I don’t want to sound like a communist because I am not.
Inflation is hurting the lower wage earners along with over population. For some there is no hope.
Maybe “Just Say No” wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
🤷🏼♀️ We can’t save everyone.
True that. We need to triage. There are finite resources and some people are beyond help.
An estimate of one and a half million people have entered the United States illegally since Biden took office. How many of them were drug couriers?
Seems like everything is an invasion with the Democrat rule: invasion of illegals, invasion of drugs, invasion of homeless, pending invasion of Ukraine and Taiwan, invasion of stores by groups of robbers, and so on. Democrats have a problem with boundaries.
The Fentanyl is coming from Communist China. They have teamed up with the Mexican drug cartels to get this poison into the U.S. If you like Darwin, then you might want to ban Narcan and let this epidemic run its course.
American society and the media have made individual responsibility and consequences into something people laugh about, and this is the result. I feel sorry for all families harmed by this illegal drug.
It’s the lousy government that is responsible for this.A flood of people and drugs coming into the United States.They are getting kickbacks from somewhere.Close the borders build the rest of the wall increase the military to take care of the borders.You are never going to help the drug users as long as you have the drugs.How stupid was it to legalize weed.And we are to lenient with alcohol also if you get busted with a dui no more driving privileges period.
“… You get by with doing drugs and suffer no consequences. I like it here.”
California Proposition 47,
Reduced Penalties for Some Crimes Initiative (2014)
The measure required misdemeanor sentencing instead of felony for the following crimes:
Personal use of most illegal drugs
Prop 47 listed Supporters, under Officials, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom
Keep this in mind when he finally gets around to a press release “addressing” this latest crisis.
Judges in this state used to have a VERY powerful tool at their disposal.
Prior to Prop 47 defendant was charged, then convicted of Felony drug possession. During sentencing a harsh State Prison sentence was handed down and was then conditionally stayed by the Judge.
Conditioned upon getting defendant clean n sober, maintaining that sober state during years on Probation, usually 3 to 5 years, additionally they would maintain employment and be subject to random drug testing while on Probation.
Judges made it very clear failure meant going to State Prison and doing years long original Felony sentence.
Progressive liberal politicians became embarrassed by CA’s growing prison population, their knee jerk Court ordered fix was AB-109 causing county jail overcrowding in all 58 counties across the state.
Prop 47 was knee jerk fix to jail overcrowding.
Making it harder for Police to charge Felonies.
Now if convicted misdemeanor defendant is given a choice of treatment program or jail, they pick jail. They know because of overcrowding they’ll do a fraction of their sentence and be back on the street their case over, with their untreated habit long before any treatment program would end.
Proven method to force substance abusers to get clean n sober Judges had, by threat of State Prison which saving many lives, was destroyed by Prop 47.
Until media starts intensive coverage or kids of rich campaign contributors start dying don’t expect much from liberal politicians.
I see lots of claims that closing the borders will solve this problem. The reality is that fentanyl has a high value for relatively small amounts. Because of this, the drug smugglers have figured a number of creative ways to get the drug into our country, and law enforcement can only stop a relatively small percentage of it.
China and Mexico are certainly a big part of the illegal problem. But it’s the demand for these drugs here in our own country and local communities that is the real problem. Solving the demand problem is the only way to stop the flow of these deadly drugs into our country. And no one has come up with a realistic way to accomplish this.
Plugging up the border would stop the vast majority of it right there. Let’s say 80% to 95%. They’d have to use narcosubs and insane crap like that, instead of just paying Juanita $1,500 to swallow a balloon as she breaks into America illegally with the child she’s already being paid to claim is her own.
Plugging up the border would stop the vast majority of it right there. Let’s say 80% to 95%. They’d have to use narcosubs and insane crap like that, instead of just paying Juanita $1,500 to swallow a balloon as she breaks into America illegally with the child she’s already being paid to claim is her own.
Keep in mind please that the average cost of a coyote-smuggling service vastly exceeds the amount of $$$$ that the average American family possesses in savings. Poor and huddled masses indeed.
That’s EXACTLY what happens when state senators like Wiener decriminalize non violent crimes and call it NORMAL !!
Some people are so stupid you could tell them rat poison will get them high & they’ll try it.
You mean glow in the dark with Carbon 14 for 27k years.
This article strikes me as somewhat overdramatic.
Anyhow,
Those who believe the people in Government are leaders are the people responsible for the Governments failure.
Professional Politicians are not leaders.
They are simple con men who have a great con.
Just like any con, it’s worthless.
And some people keep on calling these criminals leaders.
Still wondering why fentanyl isn’t the drug of choice for executing those convicted of capital crimes without any doubt, like Richard Allan Davis.
Maybe if Biden and his entire family were not owned by China in our country was not taken over by Communists this would not be happening China since the drugs to Mexico the Mexican cartel makes the drugs runs them over the border that is wide open all in an attempt to kill American citizens I thought this was common knowledge this has been going on for years. On a side note if the Biden administration was serious about saving lives and concerned about covid the border would not be wide open why do we need to take experimental shots and wear masks when the southern border is wide open to the entire world. Anybody that votes Democrat well I’ll leave it there.
More Fentanyl deaths in SF than Covid deaths. That’s a fact.
As long as it’s not covid who cares? Right?
Drugs paid by three stimulus checks! What a State.
Tax payers are getting screwed.
Just as the rat park experiments found in the 70’s – if you socially isolate rats and confine them to an area with no stimulus then they will use drugs to cope, which frequently resulted in death.
Rats living in ‘rat park’ (aka rat paradise with other rats) would always prefer to be with other rats instead of using drugs.
In other words, this shouldn’t be a surprise consequence of putting people on unemployment and locking the economy down. Drug and alcohol use is typically a coping mechanism for underlying problems – economic issues, mental illness, loneliness, depression, anxiety, etc. Not wanting to be present in life but not wanting to commit suicide yet either.
There’s deeper problems that need to be addressed here. Simply going after drug use isn’t attacking the root of the issues and won’t be very effective. If people want to get high they will find a way. Drugs always win as we have seen.
@Jim….I think those rat experiments back in the 70s also showed when rats were packed like sardines in their environment they began eating each other. Soooo….are we becoming that Soylent Green society? Welcome to the party….the Donner Party.
I have thought about boredom and drug use. Children can be taught to be inquisitive and thoughtful. The cornucopia of learning must be taught and explored from the time they are born.
I have read by the time a child is five, they have developed patterns and preferences or can be ruined for life. Having a drug addict in the extended family has illuminated this truth. The child was rescued, but had behavioral problems and a deep sense of low self esteem even after forty years, education, excellent career.
Dealing fentilanyl is murder. How many people are in prison for dealing fentanyl with a life term. My bet is none.
This is a hard world to live in. Some people just give up. Name calling and finger pointing and dems left right this and that does nothing but perpetuate the helplessness that some people feel. The political rhetoric and vitriol is so contrived it’s lost on me how not more people can see it. Take a step back and look at what’s really going on, then count yourself among the fortunate who are not bound to go down the road of desperation.
We know of no one in our circle of friends and family and even friends of friends and family of families of anyone that’s ever died of an overdose of any kind nor anybody’s kids ever get mixed up in anything like that drug wise so sometimes you just got to ask what the hell is the matter with some of these people, adults teenagers and kids alike it’s all about parenting and upbringing we must have done something right along the life’s journey sad to say many other people chose the wrong roads to go down and that is all on them. Use any excuse you want point the finger and blame whoever you want but there is a lot of people in society that have never had any problems with any of the above mentioned comments and storylines.
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No sympathy from me. Illicit drug users are responsible for their choices.
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And weak borders and weakened law enforcement enables illicit drug smuggling.
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We should stop calling the ever growing tent cities homeless encampments and start calling them drug encampments because that is what they are.
Anyone who doesn’t like newsome or Biden but voted trump, there is something seriously wrong with you. Biggest lying idiot pos I’ve ever seen. What does that make you?
And Biden and Newsom are both big liars and pos as you put it as well. You sound like a dufus..
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@Schmee
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There are magnitudes of scale when it comes to lies… from exaggerations, harmless fibs, white lies, to “whoppers”.
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The biggest whopper was when Obama stated to over 330 million Americans, “If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor” as he was promoting the ACA.
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Obama knew very well that was not true…. That some would be unable to “keep their doctor” because of healthcare system participation/enrollment and service levels.
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He said this to the ENTIRE nation.
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THAT ONE LIE DUPED AND FOOLED OVER 330 MILLION AMERICANS.
Sad, but the death of the innocent, and injustice toward citizens are of more concern to me.
Brainless Biden and his stupid minions should be thrown out of office before it’s too late! What’s the delay?
He and Money hungry Newsom are milking us dry. gas prices, prescription drug prices. empty store shelves, but rising grocery prices.
While the Medical Marijuana Lobby keeps pushing the “Opiod crisis” laws making it harder for doctors to be doctors and patients harder to get pain relief; then patients are forced to go to weed (the lobby’s hope) or to fentynal or other illegal drugs.
Notice the number of percocet or norco overdoses is minimum… yet all the laws being pushed focus on the prescription side.
So the laws punish the avg citizen and do nothing for the problem… just like gun laws… stupid.
You don’t need opium for tooth pain or a hangnail. People need to man up and get through it unless you’re dying.
@Juan- having a family member living with chronic pain due to a degenerative nerve condition and seeing what 20 plus yrs of prescription pain meds (opioids) have done to their body, marijuana has been a god send. Pain meds destroyed their digestive system and it’s never gonna return to normal. Marijuana has allowed them to completely get off pain meds. Unlike pain meds where you need to keep increasing the doses till they do nothing then having to jump to a more powerful pain med till your out of options, it has not been the case with marijuana.
The marijuana lobby may be pushing it but hate to break the news to you they didn’t create the opioid crisis, it was doctors being doctors and Big Pharma placing profit over lives. If doctors had the option to prescribe it I truly believe we might not have had a crisis.
I have two herniated disks, stenosis, and bouts of sciatica so severe I cannot walk. Kratom (sustainability harvested and organic) gave me my life back. (That plus regular exercise, sleep, good diet (etc)) / I only take as needed – and it works better than “pharmaceuticals.” The formulation of allopathic medications has declined greatly – and are not worth the bother and expense (not to mention the “stigma” – (even for those if us in severe pain)). I cannot imagine what is even in those street drugs.