In hard-hit W. Va., Obama hears of opioid crisis

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Traveling to a region in the throes of a drug-abuse crisis, President Obama promised Wednesday to use his bully pulpit and federal programs to try to combat the "epidemic" of heroin use and prescription-painkiller abuse that is upending communities across the country.

"This crisis is taking lives; it's destroying families and shattering communities all across the country," Obama said at a panel discussion on opioid drug abuse.

On stage at a crowded community center, Obama heard from advocates, health-care workers, law enforcement officials, and policymakers.

Charleston Police Chief Brent Webster said his officers deal with a "community of zombies walking around" in need of treatment. A father of five daughters described what it was like to find one of them had overdosed, a needle hanging from her arm.

Obama said the stories reminded him of his teenage daughters and his own rebellious teen years.

"They're wonderful girls, but they're teenagers. They do some . . . things," he said, pausing. "And I remember me being a teenager. I've written about this. I did some . . . stuff. And I've been very honest about it. And so what I think about is, 'There but for the grace of God,' and that's what we all have to remember."

West Virginia has the highest rate of overdose deaths in the nation - more than twice the national average, according to a report by the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

State officials say the problem is damaging the economy, depressing the workforce, and overwhelming social services.

Heroin use also is a big problem in the Philadelphia region. In New Jersey, 383 people died of heroin overdoses in 2013, a rate (4.4 per 100,000) that is 63 percent higher than the national average (2.7 per 100,000).

Heroin killed 409 Pennsylvanians that year, a rate (3.4 per 100,000) that was 26 percent higher than nationally.

Researchers say two factors are driving the trend: the rise in abuse of opioid painkillers - drugs that are often a precursor to heroin - and the increasing availability of cheap heroin.

Researchers found that most users reported using at least one other drug in combination with heroin, which contributes to high overdose rates. Between 2002 and 2013, the rate of heroin-related overdose deaths nearly quadrupled, and more than 8,200 people - by some estimates, one in every 50 addicts - died in 2013, according to the CDC.

Experts say few prescription-drug health-care providers are properly trained to safely prescribe painkillers, while access to medication-assisted treatment for addicts is too difficult.

Before leaving the White House, Obama ordered federal agencies that employ health-care providers to offer training on prescribing painkillers. They also must review their health insurance plans and address policies that might prevent patients from getting medication as part of their treatment.

Both steps are relatively modest efforts, given the budget stalemate in Congress. The White House has proposed $133 million for new treatment programs. The administration also wants to expand access to medications that can help addicts transition off other opioids, and has also pushed to expand availability of naloxone, a drug that can reverse overdose.

Inquirer staff writer Don Sapatkin contributed to this article.