Isolation brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic led to an increase in drug overdose deaths across the state last year, and the trend appears to be repeating itself this year.
Ray Barishansky, a deputy secretary at the state Health Department, said there were 422 more overdose deaths last year than there were in 2019. The numbers had been dropping since the peak year of 2017 when there were 5,300 such deaths.
âWe are seeing a different picture,â Barishansky said Thursday during a virtual press conference.
âWe look at this as the crisis it is,â he said.
Last year, 4,880 people died from drug overdoses in Pennsylvania and that number is expected to increase as toxicology reports are filed.
Greene County coroner Gene Rush has announced that he is seeking a second term.
Rush, a Rogersville resident and retired funeral director, is seeking the Republican Party nomination. Rush became Greeneâs first new coroner in more than 20 years when he defeated Democratic incumbent Gregory Rohanna in 2017 by just four votes out of 7,000 votes cast.
Since becoming coroner, Rush said he has been focused on streamlining practices and updating its methods. Work that had previously been done manually is now being done digitally, according to Rush, which he says has lowered costs and made the office more speedy and efficient.