Volunteers needed for statewide Narcan distribution effort
Harm Reduction Ohio needs your help. We are applying for an Ohio Department of Health grant to deliver Narcan to those most at risk of overdose death: people who use illegal drugs. If HRO gets the grant, we will need volunteers (and a few paid part-time workers) to reach these wonderful, unfairly stigmatized human beings in communities across Ohio.
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The myth of Ohio’s “drug use problem”
Ohioans use drugs at below average rates and have for many years. So why are overdose death rates the second highest in the country? Bad drug policies — not high drug use — are causing the overdose death epidemic.
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WARNING: Carfentanil is back in Ohio…and killing again
Carfentanil’s return coincides with an increase in overdose death in Ohio and ends a trend to lower death rates. The ultra-dangerous fentanyl analog appears to be most common in northeastern Ohio. Its frequency is still far lower than in peak in June 2017 when it was found in 9.8% of the drug supply.
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Christopher Hawkins named scientific advisor of Harm Reduction Ohio
Christopher Hawkins, a recently retired research chemist, has agreed to be Harm Reduction Ohio's new scientific advisor. Chris will analyze science for us on many issues, from infectious disease rates to drug checking. On Tuesday, Chris joined HRO's syringe program...
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Ohio, it’s time: “Free the naloxone!”
Ohio has unnecessary laws and regulations limiting naloxone access. These policies have likely contributed to Ohio’s high overdose death rate. It’s time to let properly trained laypersons hand out naloxone. Other states have done this — and it makes a big difference.
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Agenda for HRO’s “Family Matters” conference on Saturday, April 6
Co-sponsored by Ohio CAN (Change Addiction Now) Big crowd coming. Don't miss it! (We'll fit you in somehow.) REGISTER FOR CONFERENCE...
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Ohio Department of Health recommends: Provide access to sterile syringes
Most people know the CDC recommends syringe programs to reduce the spread of HIV and hepatitis. But few realize that the Ohio Department of Health also made a strong recommendation along these lines in October. The Licking County Board of Health vote to outlaw syringe programs is out of step with state and federal health authorities.
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HRO President Dennis Cauchon on InFocus talking about syringe programs and reducing hepatitis
Harm Reduction Ohio President Dennis Cauchon appeared on Spectrum News 1's InFocus show to talk about the recent outbreak of hepatitis in Columbus and other parts of Ohio and the role syringe programs play in controlling these outbreaks. The news channel is a service...
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Overdose deaths soar among blacks in Ohio
The rate of black overdose deaths is now nearly identical to that of whites. This epidemic is no longer mostly a white thing. What’s driving the increase in black deaths? Is race playing a role in government’s response to this epidemic vs. crack cocaine in the 1980s?
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How much fentanyl will kill you?
A lot less than you think.
Be careful. Be very, very careful.
Art by Hannah Weatherington
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Dennis Cauchon
President, Harm Reduction Ohio
Dennis is the founder of Harm Reduction Ohio. He created the 501(c)3 non-profit organization to advocate for drug policies that reduce overdose death, imprisonment and other drug war harms.
He is a former national reporter at USA TODAY and Knight Journalism Fellow at the University of Michigan Medical School. During his 35-year journalism career, he won various awards, including the Champion of Justice award and H.L. Mencken Award for Investigative Journalism for work on the drug war.
“I believe all people, including drug users, should be treated peacefully and with respect,” he says.
Dennis is the father of two boys and lives in Granville, Ohio.