Background: Rising rates of fentanyl- and polydrug-involved drug overdose deaths have prompted inquiry into the role of drug supply in fatal overdose outcomes in the United States. To date, however, there have been few empirical investigations of drug enforcement strategies on fatal overdose rates, despite knowledge that both drug use and supply are often geographically distributed. To address this limitation, we examined measures of drug enforcement as predictors of next-year fatal overdose rates in the Washington/Baltimore High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (W/B HIDTA).
Methods: We conducted mixed-effects models to examine the role of drug seizures and disruption in drug trafficking organizations (DTOs) and money laundering organizations (MLOs) on fatal overdose rates over a 5-year period (2016-2020) across 45 local jurisdictions in the W/B HIDTA region. Outcomes included any, opioid-involved, and fentanyl-involved fatal overdose.
Results: Adjusting for covariates, both the total number of drug seizures and amount of cocaine seized (in dosage units per capita) positively predicted next-year opioid- and fentanyl-involved fatal overdose rates. Disruption to DTO and MLO operations did not significantly predict next-year fatal overdose rates for any outcome.
Conclusion: Supply-side enforcement activities alone may have limited impact on reducing fatal overdose rates, but may serve as important markers to identify communities at high risk of fatal overdose and facilitate targeted intervention. Our findings underscore the importance of comprehensive law enforcement approaches that extend beyond drug enforcement to integrate prevention, linkage to treatment, and harm reduction strategies as needed to address the overdose epidemic.
Keywords: Drug enforcement; Drug seizure; Drug supply; Fatal overdose; Opioid epidemic.
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