Baltimoreans are dying of drug overdoses in record numbers, yet the top two mayoral candidates’ reticence about the crisis has created a deafening silence.
Incumbent Mayor Brandon Scott and former Mayor Sheila Dixon — whom polls show as voters’ top prospects — recently avoided repeated requests for comment from The Long Haul on the issue, leaving the topic largely unaddressed two months out from the primary election.
Meanwhile, more than 1,000 residents in the city they hope to lead died of overdoses in just a year, and Baltimore now holds the title as the city with the highest overdose rate in the nation.
In light of these facts, The Long Haul contacted the campaigns of the four Democratic candidates who spoke at a candidate forum earlier this month in North Baltimore. They were given two weeks to respond.
Only Thiru Vignarajah and Bob Wallace addressed the matter.
“It’s not getting nearly enough attention,” said Vignarajah, a local attorney who unsuccessfully ran for mayor in 2020 and state’s attorney in 2022. “The reason it’s not getting enough attention is because we have essentially waved and said, ‘There’s nothing we can do about this,’ which turns out to be simply not true.”
Vignarajah said overdoses in the city have become an “overwhelming crisis,” with the death toll far exceeding the number of people who die by gun violence each year.
The Democrat argued that the overdose crisis is a public health matter rather than a “criminal enterprise,” and officials must acknowledge that addiction is not a condition that can be cured overnight.
Therefore, drug users should be steered toward diversionary or treatment programs rather than a jail cell, and access to medications for opioid use disorder such as buprenorphine should be expanded — particularly in lower-income areas, he said.
Vignarajah’s experience as an attorney includes working on behalf of those helping people in the throes of addiction. He had previously helped represent Safehouse, a Philadelphia-based nonprofit that has fought to open an overdose prevention center, or OPC, in the city.
Although controversial in the U.S., the centers reduce the transmission of HIV and hepatitis, prevent overdose deaths and reduce public use, studies have shown.
The sites have received vocal support from the incumbent mayor and, although Vignarajah said he is open to the idea, he favors a mobile version of OPCs because any brick-and-mortar facilities would undoubtedly face pushback from neighborhoods.
“These are shared assets; these are public assets that the city fundamentally needs,” he said. “One way to spread that burden across communities, so it is not observed most heavily by one (neighborhood), is to have safe consumption sites that have a mobile dimension to them.”
In a statement provided to The Long Haul, Wallace, a local businessman who previously had been a registered Republican and unsuccessfully ran as an independent in 2020, emphasized the need to expand upon the city’s current treatment infrastructure.
“Although the City of Baltimore aggressively combats overdose deaths through a multi-pronged strategy and offers substantial services for those struggling with addiction, it is not enough, given the outcomes that we live with daily,” Wallace said.
Addiction is also personal to him; Wallace’s mother struggled with addiction, he said, and multiple childhood friends in Cherry Hill died of heroin overdoses.
To save lives, however, he agreed that a heavy-handed police response is not how to approach the issue.
“Addiction is not a law enforcement issue. Addiction is a health issue. Let us treat all addictions the same way that we have chosen to deal with Opioid addiction. As Mayor, I would prioritize expanding harm reduction initiatives and improving quality of life over increasing policing.
“I believe in a comprehensive approach that includes enhancing access to treatment services, investing in community-based programs, and supporting prevention and education efforts to address the root causes of addiction. By focusing on these areas, we can create a more effective and compassionate response to the overdose crisis,” Wallace said.
The candidates’ proposals to tackle the overdose crisis come as the city has been forced to reckon with the fact it has the highest overdose death rate of any city in the nation.
Baltimore had 179.8 deaths per 100,000 people — 1,053 in total — in the 12-month period ending November 2023, according to the most recent data from Maryland’s Office of Overdose Response.
The deaths mark a 5.2% increase over the year prior. The city’s death toll comprises more than 41% of overdose fatalities in Maryland, yet it accounts for only 9.5% of its population.
About 87% of those deaths were caused by fentanyl, an extremely potent synthetic opioid.
To see more local and national overdose death data, take a look at The Long Haul’s Overdose Death Data Dashboard here.
In response, the city has adopted various harm-reduction initiatives over the years.
The Baltimore City Health Department, for example, already runs a mobile syringe service program, also known as an SSP. The department provides its services at 17 locations, also offering HIV testing, overdose response training, counseling and resources to link people to treatment facilities.
There are also 10 other SSPs in the city, according to the Maryland Department of Health.
In addition, there is a relatively large amount of treatment facilities in Baltimore, with 112 drug and alcohol abuse programs in total, according to a national directory maintained by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
The Democratic and Republican primary elections will take place on May 14. The general election is Nov. 5.
For those interested in contacting me, I can be reached by email at l.hullinger@longhaul.blog or via Twitter @loganhullinger. Additional information can be found on my website.
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