Julianne Stanford
The National Institute on Drug Abuse estimates that every drug user infected with a blood-borne disease like hepatitis C is likely to infect at least 20 others through shared needles or contact with infected blood. Coles said she believes at least a third of the people who use her organization's services are infected with hepatitis C.
Nonetheless, state health officials are focused on immediate problems caused by the opioid crisis, rather than things that could be problematic down the road.
“We’re certainly looking at the big picture, but ... our focus is just on the opioid epidemic as it is, which is focusing on saving lives,” said Sheila Sjolander, ADHS assistant director of public health prevention services. "We’re really focused on preventing further deaths by expanding access to Naloxone, helping prescribers do best practices with opioid prescriptions and working with our partners to expand access to treatment.”
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