July 27 Town Hall Meeting: Opioid and Substance Abuse in Globe-Miami

 Gila County Health and Emergency Management hosted open forums in Miami, Globe and Payson asking local resident who’ve been impacted by Opioid Use Disorder to share their experiences, thoughts and suggestions. There were six separate forums – half of them tailored to friends, family and caregivers; the other half to first responders and professionals – and now local residents are invited to a July 27 town hall meeting where Gila County Health and Emergency Management staff will present findings from the Opioid Use Disorder Focus Groups.  If you or a loved one have been impacted by opioid abuse or dependency, or you’d simply like to learn more about this growing threat, please attend the Wednesday evening town hall to share your story, voice your concerns, and hear from others in your community (gift cards will be raffled for

those in attendance, too!). The Globe-Miami town hall will be July 27 (Wednesday) from 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. at the Miami Senior Center, 506 Live Oak Street in Miami. Its free to attend, but organizers request people  register online at

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/gila-county-opioid-discussion-town-hall-miamiglobe-tickets-379874483807?fbclid=IwAR3K26fK_OOiy1hlhtWSCw7MR3xpPnJy9GoYmqS6jxUmpkktFA8w3WcHVTQ

;  or find easy and convenient ‘click here’ links at  https://www.facebook.com/gilacohealthem.

Since 2017 Arizona Department of Health Services has attributed more than 9,900 deaths to opioids, more than 73,000 overdoses -- and 2,800 cases of neonatal abstinence syndrome: withdrawal and other after-effects when babies are exposed to drugs in the womb before birth. The rising number of deaths represent a 15.8% increase in total opioid deaths since 2017, and a 198% increase since 2012.