NASHUA, N.H. – American Medical Rescue, the ambulance service for New Hampshire’s two largest cities, reported an increase in suspected opioid overdoses between June 2022 and May 2022.
In the group’s monthly report, 59 suspected opioid overdoses were reported, six more than in June. In that total, 37 percent of the suspected overdoses came from people reporting Manchester as a residence and 41 percent came from people without any fixed address. A total of 32 percent of the suspected overdoses were recorded in a residence, followed by 27 percent in a public building or area and 20 percent in a roadway or vehicle.
The report indicated that 332 suspected overdoses have occurred in Manchester between January 1 and June 30. Current projections put the expected number of suspected overdoses by the end of the year in Manchester at 675, over 400 more than in Nashua and just over 100 more than the Manchester total from 2021.
A total of five suspected opioid overdose deaths were also reported, but that data is subject to confirmation by the Office of the Chief New Hampshire Medical Examiner.
The NH Doorway program can be accessed by calling 2-1-1 at any time of the day or night.
UPDATE: Hours after the publication of this article, Center Square reported that New Hampshire will be required to pay back nearly $8 million in federal funds after an audit discovered that New Hampshire opioid addicts are not receiving treatments that meet Medicaid standards.