STATE OF NEW JERSEY | COUNTY OF BERGEN
               

Response to the Opioid Epidemic

Opioid Response

Bergen County Opioid Initiatives and Resources

Bergen County law enforcement has taken a strategic and coordinated approach to addressing the opioid epidemic. Beginning in 2014, all Bergen County law enforcement officers were provided with Naloxone kits by the BCPO, as the rate of opioid overdoses was drastically increasing. The following year, in 2015, there were 288 overdoses in Bergen County as reported by law enforcement. Despite the availability of Naloxone, that year 87 people died of a drug-related overdose in Bergen County.

Due to a combination of factors, including the prevalence of fentanyl in the illicit drug market, overdoses have continued to increase, with 691 suspected overdoses reported by law enforcement in 2022. Pending final reports by the Office of Chief State Medical Examiner, there were 125 suspected drug-related fatalities in Bergen County in 2022.

The BCPO has dedicated resources and creative solutions to this epidemic that is affecting all corners of our county. In addition to our traditional functions of prosecution and enforcement, that multi-faceted approach includes:

-Prevention through Education and Awareness

-Connection to Recovery Support and Treatment

-Diversion within the Criminal Justice System

-Prediction through Multi-Disciplinary Discussion and Analysis

Prevention Through Education and Awareness

Community Awareness

Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced an investigation into an overdose death in Hackensack as well as the recent surge in fentanyl-related overdoses in Bergen County.

"We must sound the alarms. You have to assume that any drug bought on the street – whether powder or pill – contains fentanyl and can kill you.” -Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella

“The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office is committed to combating the deadly effects of fentanyl through targeting suppliers and traffickers of narcotics. Although fentanyl has plagued our state for several years, it is now being seen in both recreational and black market medications and pills." - BCPO Chief Jason Love

CBS New York spoke with BCPO Chief Jason Love about the tri-state area's fentanyl crisis.

"Every pill that they're buying on the street and not prescribed through a doctor is a death sentence, potentially." -BCPO Chief Jason Love

Watch Video Here

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Educational Presentations

Detectives from the BCPO’s Narcotic Task Force have spoken to thousands of Bergen County middle and high schools about the dangers of illicit drugs and the high risk of addiction associated with opioids in a presentation called “Pathway to Addiction.”

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Medicine Dropbox Locations

Unused prescription medications are often diverted onto the street or consumed outside of the doctor’s recommended schedule. Appropriate, safe disposal of these medications is important, so the BCPO has partnered with the Bergen County Utilities Authority to encourage residents to dispose of expired or unused prescription medication at one of the BCUA’s quarterly recycling events.

Or locate a Project Medicine Drop box at your local police department headquarters.

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Heart at Work

Prosecutor Mark Musella joins with other law enforcement officials, The Center for Alcohol and Drug Resources and Alumni in Recovery on a quarterly basis to provide updates about ongoing efforts to combat the opioid epidemic in Bergen County.

Watch Video Here

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Connection to Recovery Support and Treatment

24/7 Hotline Service

For those struggling with addiction, the BCPO has partnered with The Center for Alcohol and Drug Resources, a program of Children’s Aid and Family Services, to provide a 24/7 hotline, which is available to all Bergen County residents, to connect individuals with peer recovery support and treatment.

Peer recovery specialists are individuals in long-term recovery who are specially trained to motivate and support those struggling with addiction through treatment and recovery.

Anyone struggling with addiction or family members who are seeking resources or support, can call or text (201) 589-2976. If you can’t remember the phone number, just remember #StoptheODs.

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Questions about programs or resources can be sent to 247@cafsnj.org and anyone seeking help can call or text (201) 589-2976.

Operation Helping Hand

Officers are also able to use an arrest as an opportunity for Connection. During Operation Helping Hand, individuals who are observed buying narcotics are presented with the option of treatment. Following an arrest, individuals are connected with a peer recovery specialist, assessed by a patient navigator and provided with a treatment plan. Withdrawal management and treatment beds are reserved in advance of the operation, so that barriers to treatment are removed.

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Diversion Within the Criminal Justice System

Bergen County Municipal Recovery Court

Within the Criminal Justice System, Diversion is available through a pilot program launched in 2018 called the Fair Lawn Initiative. Beginning in early 2023, this program expanded to a county-wide Bergen County Central Municipal Diversion Program in which defendants facing possession, shoplifting or other charges related to an addiction are provided an opportunity to enter treatment. If the individual remains in compliance with the agreed-upon treatment plan for six months, the charges are dismissed.

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Prediction Through Multi-Disciplinary Discussion and Analysis

Overdose Fatality Review Team

In 2021, the BCPO and the Bergen County Department of Health Services - Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services launched a county-wide Overdose Fatality Review Team. During monthly meetings, this multi-disciplinary team conducts social autopsies of overdose fatalities from the previous year in an effort to understand the causes of addiction and overdose, and to identify system gaps or areas to improve connection between systems.

Read the 2020 OFRT Annual Report

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Year
Overdoses
LE Narcan Deployments
LE Narcan Saves
Drug Related Fatalities
2022*
690
376
257
125
2021*
730
368
255
176
2020*
664
325
233
147
2019
657
388
274
138
2018
583
352
255
142
2017
504
325
245
129
2016
320
208
180
99
2015
288
187
170
87
*The final reports on 2020-2022 drug-related deaths are still pending. These estimates are pending final determination by the NJ Office of the Chief State Medical Examiner.
Opioid Statistics last updated on 3/21/2023.