Opioid abuse is a serious national crisis.  According to the Hawaii Opioid Initiative:

• 91 Americans die every day from an opioid overdose.
• In Hawaii, between 2012 and 2016, an average of 150 people per year died from a drug overdose compared to 113 deaths from motor vehicle crashes. Many of those deaths were related to prescription medication.
• In 2012, 259 million prescriptions for opioid pain relievers were written; enough for every adult in America to have their own bottle.
• In Hawaii, there are nearly 490,000 dispensed prescriptions for oxycodone and hydrocodone alone, potentially consumed by more than 1/3 of the resident population.

Additionally, the National Safety Council (“NSC”) conducted a survey of employers earlier this year.  75% of respondents indicated they had been affected in some way by employee use of opioids, yet only 17% of respondents indicated they were “extremely well prepared to deal with opioid use in the workplace.”

Although Hawaii has not experienced the effects as devastatingly as the mainland, like many things, public health trends often appear here later than in other states.  With that in mind, it is important to be proactive in combating this epidemic.

In addition to information and resources available to employers on the Hawaii Opioid Initiative website, the NSC recently released a Worker Opioid Abuse Toolkit aimed at employers setting up abuse prevention programs.  This free kit is intended to help employers:

• Learn about opioid misuse and disorders and understand opioids’ impact on the workplace;
• Recognize signs of impairment;
• Educate workers on the risks of opioid misuse;
• Form human resources policies and procedures; and
• Support employees struggling with addiction to the drugs.

Among the federal agencies backing the effort are the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Office of the Surgeon General, and the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

“We are calling on our nation’s employers to take action,” NSC President Lorraine Martin said at a gathering in Washington for the toolkit’s release.  “Workplaces . . . can be the place that provides that catalyst for an individual to get into a program and get into recovery and to be heard and to be seen such that the right actions can be taken,” Martin said.  “So it’s really important that we provide our workplaces and professionals at all levels all the tools we need.”