Reducing overdose: Schedule for the Ohio State University conference on Sept. 27-28

Focus on reducing overdose death in Ohio

Many outstanding minds from across the country will speak at a major harm reduction conference Thursday-Friday, Sept. 27-28 ,at the Ohio State University law school’s Drug Enforcement and Policy Center.

The conference, which is free and open to the public, is called “From Punishment to Public Health: Embracing Evidence-Based Solutions to End the Overdose Crisis.” The two-day event is the focused on harm reduction approach, although a wide range of perspectives will be covered.

Susan Sherman did research showing effectiveness of fentanyl test strips, now common in Ohio

The event will be held at the Moritz College of Law auditorium at the corner of North High Street and 12th Avenue in Columbus.It is sponsored by:

• Harm Reduction Ohio.
• the Ohio State University law school’s Drug Enforcement and Policy Center.
• the Drug Policy Alliance.
• the Ohio State University College of Pubic Health.
• the Harm Reduction Coalition.
• the ACLU of Ohio.

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Names to note

The recently released schedule of speakers provides an exceptional range of perspectives and topics that will be covered. Harm Reduction Ohio President Dennis Cauchon will open Friday with an overview of the overdose epidemic.

Samuel Roberts of Columbia University, Police Chief Tom Synan of Newtown, Ohio, Susan Sherman of Johns Hopkins University and Daniel Raymond of the Harm Reduction Coalition are among those who will speak about reducing overdoses.

Samual Roberts of Columbia University, who studies the history of medicine, will open the conference with a lunchtime address on Thursday.

Bill Ebben

Ohio lawyer and businessman Bill Ebben, who lost a son to a fentanyl overdose, will be on a panel discussing prosecuting drug dealers for homicide when the drugs they sold cause an overdose death.  Bill wrote an article for HarmReductionOhio.org called “Do NOT prosecute the drug dealer who sold my son the drugs that killed him.”