Drug overdose deaths in the First State declined last year for the first time in a decade.

Delaware Division of Forensic Science data shows there were 527 accidental drug overdose deaths in 2023, a 1.8% decrease from 2022.

Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health Director Joanna Champney says the decrease is encouraging, but there are several more gaps to fill to continue to see that decrease.

“One area that we continue to be focused on is increasing the availability of publicly funded addiction treatment services.,” Champney says. “We know that for people without insurance, it is critical that they be able to get treatment for addiction.”

State health officials say more than 140,000 Delaware adults are living with a substance use disorder, and state statistics indicate rising fatal overdoses and drug use in Black and Hispanic/Latino communities.

But Champney says progress on overdose deaths can be traced in part to increased distribution of the overdose reversal medication Narcan and nonprofits working to reduce stigma around substance use disorders.

Director of Communications for the nonprofit atTAcK addiction Jill Fredel says it’s welcome news, but they are keeping perspective.

“It went down from 537 to 527, and if you look at that 527 number, that’s about four times as many people who are lost in Delaware in traffic fatalities. So it is still a huge number.”

Fredel attributes the decline to many factors, including Narcan distribution and spreading information about treatment options statewide.

She also points to the work of the state’s Behavioral Health Consortium and its Prescription Opioid Settlement Distribution Commission subcommittee, charged with distributing over $250 million in opioid settlement funds to expand access to substance use treatment services and combat the opioid crisis in Delaware.

But Fredel says more public resources are necessary. She notes people coming out of residential treatment systems need more support to regain independence – and currently there is only one public detox facility in the state, located in New Castle County.

Fredel adds that atTAcK addiction recently opened its first storefront location in Bear, which includes a food pantry that has been an entry point for many seeking help.

“It’s a little bit easier to come somewhere and ask for food than to come and say, ‘my loved one needs treatment for substance use disorder,’” Fredel says. “But it’s an entry point and you start to build trust.”