East Baton Rouge alone had 311 fatal overdoses in 2021; 90% of which involved fentanyl

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Battling record overdoses, Baton Rouge recruits business community: 'Can't do this work alone"

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As opioid deaths continue to climb to record highs in East Baton Rouge Parish, leaders and recovery advocates are recruiting the business community to help battle the deadly drug.

The effort will start with a 12-month campaign to provide addiction recovery resources across the parish, paid for with a $100,000 donation from H&E Equipment Services Inc.

"There are people working every day who are overwhelmed trying to address this," company CEO Brad Barber said.

H&E hopes to bring additional businesses aboard the campaign, creating a coalition to expand resources for people struggling with addiction and to make lifesaving overdose-reversing medication, such as Narcan, more widely available.

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The parish set a record in 2021 with 311 fatal overdoses, about 90% of which involved fentanyl, parish Coroner Dr. Beau Clark said.

"It's not looking good for the end of 2022," Clark said. "I have a feeling we're going to hit another record."

Clark's office has confirmed 159 fatal overdoses in 2022, leaving the parish on course to exceed 350 for the year, said Jon Daily, a grants manager in the parish District Attorney's Office who spearheads its efforts to address overdoses.

In 2012, only 28 people died of an overdose in the parish, according to Clark's office. The number of fatal overdoses steadily rose every year after that before skyrocketing during the pandemic.

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