Delaware

Delaware officials recommend ways to reduce fatal overdoses after 2 years of decreases

Published

7 months ago

October 26, 2025

Delaware officials recommend ways to reduce fatal overdoses after 2 years of decreases

This story was produced by Spotlight Delaware as part of a partnership with Delaware Online/The News Journal. For more about Spotlight Delaware, visit www.spotlightdelaware.org.

A state board charged with examining opioid overdoses found that expanding treatment options, police officer training and shelter access could reduce the number of deaths for Delawareans battling mental illnesses along with addiction.

The Delaware Overdose Fatality Review Commission, which does not have public meetings, released its annual report on Oct. 21, reviewing a sample of 103 overdoses from 2022 to create recommendations for how state leaders can best address opioid deaths in the First State.

The state saw 338 fatal drug overdoses last year, a roughly 36% decrease compared to 2023. For years, Delaware ranked as one of the hardest-hit states in the nation on a per-capita basis, but the figures represent a second straight year of decreases and the lowest annual total since 2017.

In the commission’s report, it conceded its sample is not perfect, and that there were obstacles in securing more complete data. One of those obstacles, the report said, was securing data from the state’s largest hospital.

“Notably, data from ChristianaCare was unavailable for this report and the 2022 dataset, which further limits the completeness of the overall information,” the report said.

The commission’s director, Julia Lawes, said in an email the hospital did provide the data, but not in a “timely manner” due to a third-party service provider. However, Lawes said the issue had been addressed and measures were put in place to prevent it from happening in the future.

The report also said there were 58 people excluded from the data because the commission was only able to obtain their death certificates and limited information about their circumstances. The report speculates this could mean these individuals did not interact with various medical providers or law enforcement prior to their deaths.

According to the report, the average person who died from an overdose in 2022 was a 42-year-old white male, and most people had high school diplomas and worked in construction.

The data also said that nearly 92% of people who died of a fatal overdose had fentanyl in their systems.

What did the commission recommend?

One of the commission’s first recommendations was that Delaware providers expand treatment options and improve follow-ups for those battling mental illnesses as well as addiction.

The report said services in the state can be “fragmented and disjointed,” and it recommends expanding the continuum of care to better serve patients. When asked about whether that meant stronger communication between providers or consolidating their services, Lawes said it could be both.

“Ultimately, we’d love to see improved care coordination across the board throughout the state, so people can more easily access the full range of services they need,” Lawes said.

Another recommendation from the commission includes improving training for law enforcement when it comes to interacting with those who may be struggling with addiction and have a mental illness.

This training, the report said, could include partnering with different diversion programs that keep people out of the justice system and guide people to the appropriate care.

An additional recommendation included expanding access to shelter services for people who are homeless. According to the report, nearly half the people in the sample were either unhoused or housing-insecure, meaning they had no identified residence.

The report stressed its support of “housing first” models that support placing people who are homeless into permanent living arrangements.

But the report also said that model could face “implementation challenges” following an executive order that bars federal agencies from funding programs that use housing first policies.

Data from the commission’s sample found that of those who were homeless prior to their death, 10% had accessed treatment or services through a shelter, with the lowest shelter use in Kent and Sussex counties.

The report pointed to a lack of public transportation in the two counties and recommended creating dedicated shuttle routes for “high-need” areas and partnering with ride-share companies to provide vouchers for trips to medical or treatment appointments.

“These measures could help ensure that individuals are not denied access to life-saving treatment and recovery support simply because they lack transportation,” the report said.

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Delaware

Thomas Jefferson University to run Delaware’s first medical school

Published

9 hours ago

June 3, 2026

Press Room

Thomas Jefferson University to run Delaware’s first medical school

Thomas Jefferson University is opening a regional campus of its Sidney Kimmel Medical College in Delaware, an effort that will result in the state’s first medical school.

Jefferson beat out three other bidders to establish the four-year program in partnership with the state. The other bidders were the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, the consulting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Ponce Health Sciences University in Puerto Rico, Spotlight Delaware reported.

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The inaugural class of 40 medical students will begin instruction in July 2028. Initially, the campus will be based at the University of Delaware in Newark, with Jefferson faculty providing instruction. A permanent home for the campus is still being finalized, the Inquirer reported.

The medical students will receive 18 months of preclinical training on campus before receiving clinical training from healthcare providers in Delaware’s southern counties, where the state’s physician shortage is most deeply felt. That shortage is compounded by an aging population, Delaware officials said.

“Jefferson is committed to being part of the solution to Delaware’s physician shortage,” Jefferson CEO Dr. Joseph Cacchione said in a statement. “We are proud to help build a future where every Delawarean has access to the care they deserve. Jefferson is all in.”

The school’s creation is being supported by $157.4 million from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Delaware is one of three states without a Doctor of Medicine or Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine program. Since the late 1960s, Jefferson and the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine have reserved seats for Delaware students.

“Sidney Kimmel Medical College has trained generations of physicians for more than 200 years, more than any other medical college in the country,” Said Ibrahim, dean of Sidney Kimmel Medical College, said in a statement. “It is a privilege to bring our mission to Delaware’s patients and communities.”

Jefferson has announced several expansions recently. The university is establishing a full-time doctor of nursing practice-nurse anesthesia program and several online graduate programs at the Lehigh Valley Health Network Center for Healthcare Education in Lehigh County. It also is opening a satellite respiratory therapy lab at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Allentown.

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Delaware

Delaware is getting its first medical school, with classes set to start in 2028

Published

19 hours ago

June 2, 2026

Press Room

Delaware is getting its first medical school, with classes set to start in 2028

Delaware officials said medical students will start their classroom instruction at UD and then do their clinical training at offices and health care systems in Kent and Sussex counties, where the shortage of doctors is most acute.

However, ChristianaCare, which has its own partnership with Jefferson, is not participating. The state’s largest health care system was part of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine’s unsuccessful bid to operate the school. In a joint statement from ChristianaCare and PCOM, the two organizations expressed disappointment with not being part of the consortium of higher education institutions and healthcare organizations.

“The path forward raises genuine questions about whether the school’s goals can be fully realized without ChristianaCare’s meaningful participation in its clinical training mission,” it said. “The success of any four-year medical program depends not just on an academic institution, but on a true and committed partnership with its clinical partners — one built on shared mission, mutual investment and trust developed over time.”

Students in the first class can get their tuition subsidized, covering all of their education costs, in exchange for an agreement to work in rural Delaware for five years.

Running the medical school is expected to cost Jefferson $78 million over the next five years. The money is from a federal rural health grant through the Rural Health Transformation Program, which congressional Republicans created in the so-called “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act.”

The program will give $50 billion to every state over five years, though exactly the total each will eventually receive is unclear. Half of the money is to be distributed equally to states and the other half is awarded by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services based on a variety of factors.

The state applied for $1 billion late last year to improve health care in Kent and Sussex counties. The Trump administration has so far allocated Delaware $157 million. Delaware is expected to receive at least $500 million over the life of the fund.

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