WAITSBURG—At the April 18 meeting, the Community Health and Protection Committee (CHPC) discussed drug use, overdoses, and the use of naloxone to prevent deaths from opioid deaths.

The CHPC was concerned about the increase in fentanyl use in the community. According to data from the Washington State Department of Health (DOH), fentanyl replaced methamphetamines as the drug most involved in overdoses in Washington state in 2020.

A big concern for local healthcare and law enforcement organizations is that people unknowingly purchase and use fake pharmaceuticals laced with illicit fentanyl....