Boston.com

Overdose deaths reached record high as pandemic spread

Americans died of drug overdoses in record numbers as the pandemic spread across the country, federal researchers reported Wednesday, the result of lost access to treatment, rising mental health problems and wider availability of dangerously potent new street drugs.

In the 12-month period that ended in April, more than 100,000 Americans died of overdoses, up almost 30% from the 78,000 deaths in the prior year, according to provisional figures from the National Center for Health Statistics. The figure marks the first time the number of overdose deaths in the United States has exceeded 100,000 a year, more than the toll of car accidents and guns combined. Overdose deaths have more than doubled since 2015.

Although recent figures through September suggest the rise in deaths may have slowed, the grim threshold nonetheless signals a public health crisis whose magnitude was both obscured by the COVID pandemic and accelerated by it, experts said.

“These are numbers we have never seen before,” Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, said of the tally.

The fatalities have wide repercussions, since most of them occur among people ages 25-55, in the prime of life, she added.

“They leave behind friends, family and children, if they have children, so there are a lot of downstream consequences,” Volkow said. “This is a major challenge to our society.”

The rise in deaths — the vast majority caused by synthetic opioids — was fueled by widespread use of fentanyl, a fast-acting drug that is 100 times more powerful than morphine. Increasingly, fentanyl is added surreptitiously to other illegally manufactured drugs to enhance their potency.

Overdose deaths related to use of stimulants like methamphetamine, cocaine, and natural and semi-synthetic opioids, such as prescription pain medication, also increased during the 12-month period.

Fentanyl’s ubiquity, combined with the unique social conditions caused by the pandemic, have combined to create a perfect storm, experts said. While some drug users seek out fentanyl, Volkow said, others “may not have wanted to take it. But that is what is being sold, and the risk of overdose is very high.”

“Many people are dying without knowing what they are ingesting,” she said.

People struggling with addiction and those in recovery are prone to relapse. The initial pandemic lockdowns and subsequent fraying of social networks, along with the rise in mental health disorders like anxiety and depression, helped create a health maelstrom.

So, too, did the postponement of treatment for substance abuse disorders, as health care providers nationwide struggled to tend to huge numbers of coronavirus patients and postponed other services.

Dr. Joseph Lee, president and CEO of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation, said community and social support that was lost during the pandemic, along with the closing of schools, contributed to rising overdose deaths.

“We’re seeing a lot of people who delayed getting help, and who seem to be more sick,” Lee said.

The vast majority of these deaths, about 70%, were among men ages 25-54. And while the opioid crisis has been characterized as one primarily impacting white Americans, a growing number of Black Americans have been affected as well.

There were regional variations in the death counts, with the largest year-over-year increases — exceeding 50% — in California, Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, West Virginia and Kentucky. Vermont’s toll was small but increased 85% during the reporting period.

Increases of about 40% or more were seen in Washington state, Oregon, Nevada, Colorado, Minnesota, Alaska, Nebraska, Virginia and the Carolinas. Deaths dropped in New Hampshire, New Jersey and South Dakota.

“If we had talked a year ago, I would have told you, ‘Deaths are skyrocketing.’ But I would not have guessed it would get to this,” said Dr. Andrew Kolodny, medical director of the Opioid Policy Research Collaborative at Brandeis University’s Heller School for Social Policy and Management.

Most of those who died probably already suffered from addiction, or were in recovery and relapsed, an ever-present risk exacerbated during times of stress and isolation, Kolodny said. And many of those with an addiction to synthetic opioids very likely became addicted after being given prescription opioids by medical providers.

“Teenagers are routinely being given opioids to this day when their wisdom teeth come out,” he said.

President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan Act includes $1.5 billion for the prevention and treatment of substance use disorders, and $30 million to fund local services for people struggling with addiction, including syringe exchange programs.

Federal funds can also be used now to buy rapid fentanyl test strips that people can use to check whether drugs have been laced with fentanyl.

But critics say the response has been inadequate given the magnitude of the public health emergency. They have called for new funding streams to provide universal access to treatment, and for treatment centers in every county that offer same-day access to substance abuse treatment.

For example, physicians still need federal permission to prescribe buprenorphine, a first-line treatment for opioid use disorder, which limits the number of providers.

“If you really want to see deaths comes down, you have to make it much easier for someone who is addicted to opioids to access treatment, particularly with buprenorphine,” Kolodny said. “It has to be easier to get treatment than to buy a bag of dope.”

Michelle Wu says city is pausing tent removals at Mass. and Cass pending court ruling on ACLU lawsuit

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said Wednesday the city is pausing tent removals around the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard while the Suffolk Superior Court weighs a lawsuit filed by the ACLU to stop the encampment protocols that were rolled out in early November. 

mass. and cass

Boston officials began removing tents in the area known as “Mass. and Cass” on Nov. 2, implementing procedures mandated in an executive order issued by then-acting Mayor Kim Janey. The protocols targeted the removal of the hundreds of tents established around the blocks of the city that have become the epicenter of the addiction, mental health, and homelessness crises in the region. Janey said the goal was to get people struggling with homelessness, addiction, and mental health connected with resources and services.

Under the executive order, the city mandated that unhoused individuals in the area must be given at least 48 hours notice that tents must be removed, and officials said no one would be required to remove their structure unless they have been offered a bed in a shelter or another service like a treatment facility. But under the executive order, people who were offered placement and refused to remove their shelter could be charged with disorderly conduct.

In their lawsuit filed on behalf of three people experiencing homelessness, the ACLU said the city drove individuals out of the area without first identifying viable housing options for them and destroyed people’s belongings. 

A hearing on the lawsuit is being held Wednesday morning in the Suffolk Superior Court.

During a press conference outside City Hall a day after she was sworn into office, Wu said while the protocols are paused, the team she has assembled to address the situation at Mass. and Cass will be working to ensure Boston is bringing a public health and housing lens to addressing the humanitarian crisis in the area. 

Wu has tapped Dr. Monica Bharel, the state’s former public health commissioner who is leading the city’s response to Mass. and Cass; Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, executive director of the Boston Public Health Commission, who has been elevated to the mayor’s cabinet; and Sheila Dillon, the city’s housing chief.

“The crises at Mass. Ave and Melnea Cass Boulevard are top of mind for residents across Boston, as well as all the departments working within city hall and across city government,” Wu said.

Wu has previously expressed general support for Janey’s executive order, though she said she planned to make some adjustments once in office. 

When asked on Wednesday if the city would resume removing encampments if the court rules against the ACLU, Wu said “not necessarily.”

“We are in the process of working with the team and Dr. Bharel is going to be leading these efforts and making sure that the city has a proactive look at what the right policies are and especially how we focus on bringing low-threshold, stable, supportive housing into part of that policy,” the mayor said.

“I think across the board there is agreement that we need to take a public health lens and a housing lens to this crisis,” she said. “And how that actually ends up connecting with people’s experience on the ground matters a great deal. So we’re going to be looking at all of that — from the policy all the way down to what is happening on the streets.”

Wu said the crisis at Mass. and Cass and the need to “continue moving quickly” is at the top of the list of issues she plans to discuss when she sits down with Gov. Charlie Baker on Wednesday. 

This week, the state announced a plan to establish a “temporary cottage community” for up to 30 individuals from Mass. and Cass on the campus of the Shattuck hospital in Jamaica Plain.

“Every day that goes by, temperatures are colder and colder,” Wu said of the Shattuck proposal. “And it is life or death for our residents who are unhoused living on the street. And so we need to move quickly to find short-term solutions for stable, low-threshold housing. Certainly it’s going to be part of my conversation with the governor later today, as well as the work that we are doing internally, to continue to identify even more options for that kind of immediate housing.”

Photographer Jock Sturges pleads guilty to sexual misconduct

GREENFIELD, Mass. (AP) — A photographer known for his images of nude adolescents has pleaded guilty to engaging in sexual misconduct with a 14-year-old student in the mid-1970s while he was a teacher and dorm parent at a private boarding school in Massachusetts, prosecutors said.

Former Northfield Mount Hermon teacher John “Jock” Sturges, 74, was sentenced to three years of probation this week after pleading guilty in Franklin Superior Court to a charge of an unnatural and lascivious act on a child under 16, according to a statement Tuesday from the Northwestern district attorney’s office.

Sturges, who now lives in Seattle, was ordered by the judge to undergo sex offender treatment and stay away from the victim.

Sturges was 28 and a photography instructor at the school when he met the girl in 1975, prosecutors said.

The victim first went to Sturges when she was “lonely, homesick and had not made many friends,” prosecutor Frederic Bartmon said in court, according to The Recorder of Greenfield.

They bonded over photography, and he started bringing her on shoots, he said. Sturges persuaded her to pose for topless and nude photographs, and they had sex in his darkroom and in the woods, the prosecutor said.

The judge asked Sturges if he agreed with Bartmon’s account, and Sturges said he was comfortable with it, but added that “my memory, at 74, is not as good as I would like it to be,” The Recorder reported.

The victim, who appeared at Monday’s hearing via video, spoke of the effect her relationship with Sturges had on her.

“For a long time, many decades, I refused to believe that what I thought I wanted when I was 14 turned out to be a protracted form of sexual abuse and exploitation,” she said in an impact statement. “In the aftermath of my time at Northfield Mount Hermon, I fell apart. I had a complete nervous breakdown, suffered from extreme depersonalization and anxiety, to a point where I was not able to function at school or society.”

Sturges was originally charged in 2017 with statutory rape but pleaded to lesser charges.

Sturges’ photos have appeared in galleries around the world, and several books of his work have been published — though many see his images as little more than child pornography.

Federal authorities in California investigated him for child pornography in 1990, but a grand jury refused to indict him, The Los Angeles Times reported.

Sturges defended his work.

“They’re simply a celebration of beauty,” he said of his photos in an interview with The Associated Press in 1997 when the Christian group Focus on the Family was campaigning to have his books banned in Pennsylvania.

“We commend the survivor for her courage in coming forward and exposing the defendant’s misconduct,” said Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan. “Fortunately, the passage of time did not prevent the Commonwealth from holding the defendant accountable for his crimes, and achieving some measure of justice in this case.”

Victim of attempted murder-suicide in Salem had sought restraining order

SALEM SHOOTING:

The victim of an attempted murder-suicide in Salem had tried to get a restraining order against the man who shot her before fatally shooting himself Monday night.

That request was denied just a few weeks before the incident, according to WBZ.

Those who worked with the woman at Doyle Sailmakers said Richard Lorman, 55, of Wilton, New Hampshire, and the victim had been in a relationship, the news station reported. The unidentified victim, 33, is still in the hospital with injuries believed to be life threatening. The incident occurred near 3 Technology Way in Salem.

The victim was given a temporary restraining order on Sept. 21, according to WBZ. She had told a New Hampshire judge that Lorman was threatening her life. However, citing New Hampshire state law, the judge denied a restraining order on Oct. 20, saying that state law didn’t consider Lorman’s actions to be abuse.

The victim had told the judge last month that Lorman had been calling her and texting her family, friends, and employers just about every day, the news station reported.

“It’s just mind boggling and it really raised questions for me, who is this judge?” legal analyst Wendy Murphy told the news station. “I mean if that isn’t enough for a protective order what is?”

Marathon chase: ‘Erratic’ driver leads police on wild ride from Hopkinton to Dorchester

An unidentified driver led Massachusetts State Police on a chase from Hopkinton to Dorchester, some 30 miles, on Wednesday morning, that ended only when police were able to deflate the tires on the suspect’s vehicle.

WBZ reports State Police were informed by a witness that a driver was operating “erratically” on the Massachusetts Turnpike’s eastbound side in Hopkinton around 1:15 a.m. The driver sped off when troopers tried stop to the vehicle.

Police pursued the vehicle until a road construction zone in Southboro, according to the news station. Troopers picked up the chase in Natick, where the work zone ended.

Authorities said they used “tire deflation devices at multiple points” that eventually deflated the vehicle’s four tires before it came to a stop on Route 93 south in Dorchester.

“The operator of the vehicle was evaluated on scene by Boston EMS, taken into custody and transported back to the State Police-Charlton Barracks for booking,” State Police spokesman Dave Procopio told WBZ in statement.

Woman charged after she accidentally fires gun in Walmart

A Worcester woman is being charged after she accidentally fired the gun she had in her purse inside the Walmart in Northborough on Monday.

Crystaly Perez, 31, is being charged with discharging a firearm within 500 feet of an occupied building, according to NBC10 Boston.

Police were called to the store at 200 Otis St. just after 8:30 p.m. for a report of a gun accidentally going off. No one was injured, the news station reported.

“The customers that were in there, when they heard the gun go off, they’re thinking panic, ‘What’s going on here?'” Northborough Police Lt. Brian Griffin told the news station.

Perez, who had her toddler with her, told police she was going through her purse trying to pay when she accidentally fired the 9mm handgun. A bullet was found on the floor of the store, according to NBC10.

“Somehow, her loaded firearm, which was inside the purse, discharged,” Griffin said, as reported by NBC10. “The bullet went through her purse and lodged in between the register and the floor.”

State agencies were also made aware of the incident due to the child being with Perez at the time.

Trent Brown said he ‘almost died’ due to IV mishap in 2020

Tonight, the Celtics face the Hawks in Atlanta at 7:30 p.m.

Tomorrow, the Patriots will also be in Atlanta to play the Falcons at 8:20 p.m.

Trent Brown’s scary 2020 experience: On Sunday, Patriots offensive tackle Trent Brown was back on the field after a prolonged absence due to injury, making his first start since the season-opener in September.

For the 28-year-old, it was a fitting game to make his return. A year earlier, Brown—then playing for the Raiders—was hospitalized in Cleveland after a mishap with a pregame IV meant that air got into his bloodstream.

“To kind of come back and play against the Browns, I thought was pretty cool, because I almost died before we played them last year,” Brown told reporters on Tuesday.

As he explained, the issue occurred amid his “normal routine.”

“Getting an IV, and to just pass out and almost going into cardiac arrest was crazy,” said Brown.

“When I was laid out on the floor, I definitely thought about my kids,” he added. “I even thought about retiring, honestly. It was that scary. I was about to be done with it. Then after it kind of settled down a bit, I was fine.”

Still, Brown revealed that the timeline to make a complete comeback was far longer.

“To actually fully recover, it probably took about eight months to feel normal again,” Brown recalled. “And to actually start making steps, as far as improvement, to feel like myself again on the field after eight months.”

Eventually, New England stepped in to trade for Brown in 2021 (the second time the Patriots had acquired him in his career). Now back in the starting lineup, Brown made his presence felt immediately, helping the Patriots rush for 184 yards in Sunday’s 45-7 win over the Browns.

For Brown, it was about reconnecting with a feeling he hadn’t experienced in a while.

“I forgot how fun it is,” said Brown. “It feels like it’s been three years since I played ball and had fun playing ball.”

Trivia: In 2018, when the Patriots first acquired Trent Brown (from the 49ers), the trade with San Francisco also included a 2018 fifth-round pick, which New England used to selected a linebacker. Name that player.

(Answer at the bottom).

Hint: Purdue.

More from Boston.com:

Canada moves to the top of CONCACAF: With a hard-fought 2-1 win over powerhouse Mexico in Wednesday’s World Cup qualifier, Canada’s men’s soccer team moved to the top of the CONCACAF standings (ahead of the United States by one point through eight games).

On a frigid night in Edmonton—temperatures dipped below 20 degrees before kickoff—both goals came from forward Cyle Larin, with teammate Sam Adekugbe celebrating by jumping joyously into a nearby pile of snow. Revolution midfielder Tajon Buchanan played the full 90 minutes, partaking in some of the game’s “chippy” back-and-forth.

On this day: In 1985, the Patriots fought to the end in a 20-13 comeback win over the Seahawks. The 13-point fourth quarter allowed New England to extend the team’s winning streak to six games.

Patriots 1985

Daily highlight: West Ham striker Michail Antonio scored an absolute rocket for Jamaica to tie it up against the United States in a 1-1 draw on Tuesday.

Bonus: A truly Brazilian moment from Vinícius Jr. in a World Cup qualifier against Argentina.

Trivia answer: Ja’Whaun Bentley

Ex-minor league hockey coach charged with sexual assault in R.I.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — A former minor league coach in the Pittsburgh Penguins system who also had a brief NHL playing career has been indicted on multiple sexual assault charges in Rhode Island, the state attorney general’s office announced Tuesday.

Clark Donatelli, 55, of South Kingstown was indicted by a grand jury in July on four counts of second-degree sexual assault, the attorney general’s office said in a statement.

Donatelli pleaded not guilty at his arraignment last week in Providence County Superior Court and was released on $10,000 personal recognizance. He was also ordered to have no contact with his alleged victim, identified by the attorney general’s office only as a 46-year-old woman.

He is due back in court Dec. 15. A message seeking comment was left Tuesday’s with Donatelli’s attorney, John B. Harwood.

Donatelli is charged in connection with an alleged incident that occurred Nov 1, 2018, the attorney general’s office said. The Penguins organization earlier this month settled a federal lawsuit filed by a former minor league assistant and his wife, who accused the team of negligently retaining a coach who sexually assaulted her in Rhode Island in November 2018.

Jarrod and Erin Skalde had sued the Penguins, alleging Donatelli molested Erin Skalde during an outing with her husband along but unaware of what had happened. Donatelli was then coach of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ American Hockey League affiliate.

The NHL team said in a statement at the time that team officials took prompt action when informed of the allegations in 2019. Donatelli no longer works for the organization.

The Associated Press does not typically identify those who say they were sexually assaulted, but attorneys for the Skaldes said recently the family was fine with it because the matter had already been made public.

Donatelli is Rhode Island native who played collegiately at Boston University and played two years in the NHL for the Minnesota North Stars in 1989-90 and the Boston Bruins in 1991-92.

I have a new supervisor and she is changing some of the workflow processes. What can I do to properly adjust? Elaine Varelas guides

Q: I’ve been at my company for a few years now and I recently got a new supervisor. She wants to change our processes and I’m finding it difficult to adjust. Should I speak to my new supervisor about this, or should I just go with the new flow of things?

A: Everything changes and while you have been at your company for some time, the arrival of a new manager means there may be a period where you and others will have to make adjustments. Most managers examine processes and activities employees are involved with and often try to streamline work and eliminate duplication. However, this can be challenging for staff, and they may find it disconcerting for anyone to review the way they do their work. But part of the role of a new manager is to improve processes, streamline workflows, and support employees undergoing change.

You’re finding it difficult, but you haven’t said why. Is it a skillset, an attachment to the old ways, your relationship with an old supervisor, or is there something else going on that may be involving change within the whole organization? First find out what is causing your difficulty. Articulate to a supportive colleague what the challenge is and identity what you find difficult. If your colleague’s response is, “Get over it!”, consider that comment. If you’re missing a vital skillset, ask for support from a coworker or supervisor. If it’s an emotional reaction to changes in the organization and other areas in your life, seek help from an employee assistance program or from other supportive people.

You probably aren’t the only one trying to acclimate to the change – it’s likely other employees may be working through the same process you are. If so, one of your colleagues may find it easier to talk to your manager about the difficulties your team is having. Additionally, you and your colleagues can ask if your manager could provide some sort of group discussion for additional input.

If it’s a technology challenge, asking for help from your technology people would be a smart idea. Perhaps you have a coworker who wouldn’t mind explaining or providing a how-to guide. Just make sure not to use this as a crutch – you have to update and develop your own skills. You can usually find tutorials online to help you. Discovering your own possibilities while asking for help would be an effective way to navigate change and secure your comfort with all that it brings.

In terms of going with the flow, it really depends on whether it is something you’re used to. If you act poorly to change at the beginning and then adjust accordingly, that’s ok. However, continuing to stubbornly fight against the change will do you no good. Instead, I encourage you to have a professional conversation with your supervisor rather than letting your discomfort impact your success on the job.

A Colombian couple asked if anyone in Boston would share Thanksgiving with them. Neighbors across the city responded. 

Every year, as Thanksgiving rolls around, international students studying in the United States are left wondering what their plans will be as their fellow classmates return home to celebrate the quintessential American holiday. Usually, these students are faced with the options of either treating the fourth Thursday in November like any other holiday, celebrating amongst themselves, or getting an invitation to an American household for the big meal. 

For Harvard Medical School student Susana Orrego Villegas, Thanksgiving seemed like the perfect opportunity to embrace the culture of the new country she lives in.

Orrego Villegas arrived in Boston with her husband in August from her home country, Colombia, to study medical sciences in Global Health Delivery. They are living in Brookline while she completes her two years of study for the masters program at Harvard.

Upon hearing her classmates talk about their plans for the November holiday, Orrego Villegas felt she needed to experience her first American Thanksgiving dinner.

In Colombia, she said, there are no traditions similar to Thanksgiving.

“I think it’s part of understanding the culture,” Orrego Villegas told Boston.com. “For me, it’s important to understand what happened with the population, what they celebrate … My husband and I want to understand or learn from American culture.”

But without family in the country, Orrego Villegas looked to her local neighborhood for some help by posting on Nextdoor, an app for local tips and buy-and-sell transactions. On Oct. 26, she posted a photo of herself and her husband, asking if anyone would share Thanksgiving dinner with them. She offered to share Colombian dishes and specialities for the meal. 

Orrego Villegas said she mostly expected people to respond with recommendations for restaurants serving a Thanksgiving-style dinner.

What came next was unimaginable for her. 

Within a few days, more than 100 comments were left under her post. Multiple people invited the couple to have Thanksgiving dinner at their homes. And still more strangers, who could not host the couple for Thanksgiving, offered instead to meet and share a meal with them on another day. 

“We would be happy to invite you to share Thanksgiving with us,” wrote one commenter.

“You sound like you have enough dinner invitations for Thanksgiving,” another person wrote. “I love to cook and would love to have you over any time for cooking and dinner if you run out of options.”

Orrego Villegas and her husband ultimately chose to accept an invitation to eat Thanksgiving dinner with a family in Jamaica Plain. But the couple has already met up with two other families they connected with through the Nextdoor post. 

“In Boston, sometimes you say hello to people, and people don’t reply, so I thought people are probably not too friendly,” Orrego Villegas said. “But after [posting this], my mind changed completely.”