For the first time in three years, Travis County is seeing a slight decline in accidental drug deaths.
In 2023, there were 314 drug deaths from January to July. In that same time frame this year, there were 255 drug deaths, according to the Travis County Medical Examiner's Office.
Fentanyl-related deaths are also down. There were 134 fentanyl-related deaths from January to July this year compared to 180 in 2023.
Data for the second half of 2024 isn't available yet, but Robert Luckritz, the Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services chief, said overdoses appear to be trending downward, despite a surge in early May.
The data marks the first break in what has been a constant surge of fatal drug overdoses in the county over the past few years. But drug deaths are still well above the levels from several years ago. To put it in perspective: In all of 2018, Travis County saw nine fentanyl-related drug deaths. There have been more than nine fentanyl-related deaths every month of 2022, 2023 and the first half of 2024 in Travis County.
“We’re still very far from winning the battle against this crisis. Overdoses are still the number one cause of accidental death here in Travis County,” Travis County Judge Andy Brown said. "But we need to take a moment to recognize that investing in people and resources and Narcan and things like that are starting, hopefully, to make a difference."
Luckritz attributed the slight decline in deaths this year to the increased prevalence of Narcan, an overdose reversal drug.
Travis County began stocking several downtown bars and several vending machines with Narcan in 2022. As of this week, it's available in every Austin-Travis County EMS ambulance. It can also be accessed through several local nonprofits.
Maggie Luna, the executive director of the Texas Harm Reduction Alliance (THRA), said increasing the organization's Narcan supply and teaching others how to use it has saved hundreds of lives. THRA administered 203 doses of Narcan in all of 2023 and administered roughly the same amount in the first six months of 2024.
“I’m someone today who has eight years without opiates,” Luna said. “Overdoses are preventable. We should not have overdose deaths. And as much Narcan and education as we can get out, those are more people we can save.”
Travis County leaders said providing health care services to people exiting jail could also help lower drug deaths. People leaving jail are eight times more likely to die of an overdose in the first six months following their release than anyone else in the community, according to Travis County.
Officials said that could be due to inmates losing their tolerance to opiates in jail or not being used to the potency of some drugs in circulation.
“Without immediate access to healthcare during this transition, the risk of relapse and fatal overdose skyrockets,” Nicholas Yagoda, interim CommUnity Care CEO, said.
Travis County will use a $1.6 million grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance to create a program that will help inmates with substance use disorder transition out of jail safely. Participants in the program will receive peer recovery support and mental health care through Integral Care.
“The program is more than just treatment,” Brown said. “It’s about a pathway to recovery and ensuring a continuum of care that will help break the cycle of substance use and incarceration.”
