ST. LOUIS — Drug Enforcement Administration St. Louis Division has joined with community partners to launch a website with resources for those struggling with opioid abuse during the coronavirus pandemic.
The website, WithYouSTL.com, offers prevention resources, treatment providers, free naloxone distribution and food pantry locations, and other tools and information.
The DEA said in a press release that recent reports demonstrated a community need for resources, especially since isolation and social distancing can worsen the opioid crisis.
The St. Louis County Department of Public Health reported a 13% increase in opioid deaths in 2019, and a 47% increase in deaths in black males. And according to a survey from Addiction Policy Forum, 34% of respondents reported changes in treatment or recovery support services during the coronavirus pandemic.
“We listened to prevention, treatment, and families on the front line of opioid crisis and heard how COVID-19 impacted those who suffer from substance use disorder, in particular the devastating health effects of the coronavirus and opioid use disorder among the African American community,” said Special Agent in Charge William Callahan, head of the DEA St. Louis Division.
“....DEA leadership in Washington agreed with us that we needed to bring all these great community resources under one banner. The DEA St. Louis Division is one of few agencies in the region that crosses state and county lines, rivers and highways. We had the means to help our community, and that’s exactly what we did by creating WithYouSTL.com.”
The resources will cover the bi-state area, including the city of St. Louis and St. Clair, Madison, St. Louis, St. Charles, Franklin and Jefferson counties.
"We may be apart for now, but we will always be in this fight together. We are WITH YOU St. Louis," the website read.
For more information, go to WithYouSTL.com.
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