Rep. Lauren Davis criticizes State’s Opioid Epidemic Response at Town Hall

State Representative Lauren Davis from
Washington’s 32nd Legislative District

By Oliver Moffat

Everyone’s first aid kits should include Naloxone; opioid use disorder population is “essentially dying off”

Before returning to Olympia for her seventh legislative session, State Representative Lauren Davis joined the Substance Use Disorder Team from Shoreline’s Center for Human Services for a town hall discussion on the opioid epidemic on Thursday, January 2, 2025.

Although opioid overdose deaths declined in King County for part of 2024, the death rate has rebounded recently. 

The availability of medical interventions may have helped but the most likely reason the death rate decreased tells a much grimmer story.

“Folks in the public health world will tell you that that is not necessarily because of great interventions,” Representative Davis said,

“Not to diminish the work that's being done to prevent overdose but it's most likely because the population with severe opioid use disorder is essentially dying off and that's why you're seeing a decrease in overdose deaths,” she said.

A graph from King County shows the number of overdose deaths decreased for part of 2024
 before rebounding at the end of the year

Davis criticized the state’s scattered response to the opioid crisis. 

“What I find frustrating is that there is a real lack of any state comprehensive strategy or strategic plan or guidance to address the opioid epidemic,” she said.

“We still have two third of our counties in the state that have no opioid treatment program which is the only entity that can dispense methadone... that would be like saying you know we have huge counties with no access to chemotherapy, huge counties with no access to insulin.”

To save lives, the Center for Human Services Substance Use Disorder Team encouraged everyone to carry Naloxone and to stock the overdose reversal drug in first aid kits and medicine cabinets.

Naloxone (aka "Narcan") is an opioid blocker that can reverse opioid overdose within minutes and has no adverse side effects if it’s used on somebody who is not having an overdose. 

The overdose reversal drug is covered by most health insurance and is available online and at pharmacies. 

The King County website has information on how to get free Naloxone and Fentanyl Test Strips and the Center For Human Services distributes free harm reduction kits at their locations.

The town hall was sponsored by the North Urban Human Services Alliance (NUHSA) which serves five cities in North King County: Shoreline, Lake Forest Park, Kenmore, Bothell, and Woodinville and is composed of community advocates, human services providers, faith leaders, city council members and city staff.