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Overall ODs down but fatal overdoses up in Plymouth County
Wicked Local
There were 1,420 overdose incidents logged in Plymouth County in 2020, which was a 3% decrease vs. 2019’s 1,460 incidents, according to Plymouth County Outreach’s 2020 annual report.
But fatal ODs went up 18 percent from 2019, totaling 158 in 2020 vs. 134 the previous year.
Plymouth County Outreach is an opioid prevention and recovery coalition made up of the county’s 27 police departments, along with the Bridgewater State University Police in partnership with DA Tim Cruz and Sheriff Joe McDonald.
Seventy-seven percent of the total ODs countywide were logged in five communities: Brockton, 530, 43%; Plymouth, 157, 13%; Wareham, 136, 11%; Middleborough, 68, 6%; Rockland, 45, 4%.
Wicked Local
PLYMOUTH – The number of drug overdoses in town increased during the pandemic year of 2020, but the number of resulting fatalities actually declined.
According to statistic compiled by Plymouth County Outreach, Plymouth had 20 fatal overdoses in 2020, down from 23 in 2019. During that same time span, there were 137 non-fatal overdoses in town, 14 more than the year before.
Plymouth bucked the countywide trend, which saw fatal overdoses increase from 134 to 158 – an 18 percent increase. Overall in Plymouth County, the number of overdoses declined, with non-fatal incidents dropping from 1,151 to 1,063.
The information was released as part of Plymouth County Outreach’s annual report for 2020. PCO is a collaboration of law enforcement and healthcare professionals that seeks to decrease substance use by eliminating stigma and helping users get into recovery.