In 2020, more than 3,000 people died of from a suspected drug overdose in New Jersey. International Overdose Awareness Day is coming up on August 31. Each year, this global event aims to raise awareness of overdose, reduce the stigma of drug-related deaths and acknowledge the grief experienced by family and friends affected by this devastating illness.

The FED-UP! Coalition, an organization whose main mission is to raise awareness and demand solutions to the opioid epidemic, is organizing local rallies in towns and cities across the country. FED-UP! is helping any organization looking to coordinate and promote local rallies in efforts to make a greater impact, as the more voices that join together, the louder the message will be. If you are interested in hosting a local rally and partnering with FED UP!, you can email them here.

I also wanted to remind you that the sixth annual Knock Out Opioid Abuse Day will be held on October 6. The statewide initiative, organized by the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey and the Community Coalition for a Safe & Healthy Morris in cooperation with the New Jersey Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services and the Governor’s Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, mobilizes the prevention and treatment communities, community leaders and concerned citizens to raise awareness of the potential for dependency on prescribed pain medicine and the link to heroin and fentanyl use in our state.

More information about the 2021 Knock Out Opioid Abuse Day will be coming soon.

Be well.