ALBANY — It was three years ago when Heidi Troche found out that a close family member was suffering from heroin addiction. Since then, she has spent days at a time in hospitals following near-fatal overdoses and complications caused by tainted needles, she has struggled to find effective treatment options and tried to persuade her loved one to check into a rehabilitation facility. Troche, who actually works at a rehab facility for adolescents, is one of many Americans who have been directly affected by a nationwide heroin epidemic that has rocked the Capital District and the Town of Colonie.
In an effort to address the problem statewide, legislation introduced by local Assemblyman Phil Steck (D-110) seeks to make it easier to obtain treatment for individuals who may be unwilling or unable to do so for themselves.
“Just a couple of months ago, she was found unconscious on the floor of her bathroom with a needle still in her arm,” Troche said of the family member, a young woman in her early twenties. “And, there’s absolutely nothing I can do. Absolutely nothing. It’s an epidemic; it’s a plague. And it’s been a battle trying to get her into a program.”
“We have one individual in town that we have brought back to life four times,” said Colonie Police Chief Jon Teale. “The system we have now is clearly not working.
“I’ve spoken with our EMS director and supervisors and staff here and we’re all very interested in this new legislation because it would hopefully provide treatment for the addicts,” he continued. “Right now, if [overdoses are] transported [to a treatment facility], they’re released a short time later and they’re back out on the street and using again—and sometimes they aren’t even transported, they’ll just sit right up and walk away. They’re committing crimes frequently to support their habit; the homicide we had last year in town was a direct result of heroin addiction. There’s a real impact to everyone in the community, this is not an inner city problem anymore—it is affecting everyone. We have had heroin overdoses called in to us from people stopped at a traffic light, in traffic on a major road with a needle in their arm; we’ve had overdoses in restaurant bathrooms. It happens everywhere, there is no particular economic or social class that is affected.”
Under the proposed legislation, which amends Section 22 of the state’s Mental Hygiene Law, if an individual overdoses (or ends up in a medical care facility due to any drug or alcohol addiction) and medical professionals determine that they are a threat to themselves or to others, they could be held involuntarily for up to 72 hours, “to achieve stabilization.” If it is determined that a patient is in need of further supervised treatment, the medical practitioner may then obtain permission from highest county court to continue treatment for a period of time not to exceed 90 days.
Right now, said Troche, there is virtually nothing loved ones can do when dealing with an addict. “I had no recourse. There was no action I could take and she wouldn’t go to rehab. She ended up in jail and on probation from her use. It’s been a real struggle for the past three years. It’s hard to watch someone you love destroy themselves.”
“It is non-stop,” said Teale. “We need legislation that will address this.” He said that the bill introduced by Steck looks promising, but that he has some concerns about how the legislation will be funded and whether treatment facilities would be equipped to handle the new patients. “All of this could be a relatively large influx at first, which could create a real demand on these facilities and will there be enough beds.”
According to Steck’s office, treatment facilities are already in existence and funded through Medicaid and/or private insurance, and the legislation should result in significant savings to public services funds due to reduced emergency hospital visits, fewer police and EMS services, complications caused by needle-borne infections, and crime connected with heroin abuse. Pointing out that the brutal stabbing of Jacquelyn Porreca last summer was allegedly at the hands of heroin addicts attempting to feed their addiction, Steck said, “these are all terrible human and financial costs borne by every member of the community.”
On March 10, Assembly bill A09501 was referred to the body’s Mental Health Committee. The same legislation in the Senate, sponsored by Senator Robert Ortt (R-62), was referred to the Senate Committee on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse in February. No votes have been taken on either bill, nor are any co-sponsors listed on either piece of legislation.
In the meantime, Colonie police officers are doing what they can to stem the tide of heroin coming through the town. On Thursday, March 17, a drug bust in Colonie yielded more than 100 packets of heroin. It was too late, however, for the Colonie resident that overdosed during the previous weekend. “I think they just had the funeral two days ago,” said Teale, declining to name the victim.
“I feel like if this law had been on the books, I could have gotten her help,” said Troche. “I could have gotten the doctors to help.” Troche said that, during one prolonged hospital stay, she had attempted to have her family member transferred to a rehab facility, but was ultimately unsuccessful. Troche hopes that, if passed, the new legislation will help her finally obtain treatment for the young woman—even if it has to be involuntary. “According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse,” she said, “treatment doesn’t have to be voluntary to be effective.”