What's the Most Pressing National Public Health Emergency Right Now--AND one that is Affecting Escambia County Disproportionately?

What is the most pressing national health "emergency?"  a non-fatal skin disease that has a vaccine and can be prevented---or dangerous fentanyl from China being added to illegal drugs throughout America (and right here in Escambia County) which will, along with other opioids, actually and ultimately kill more than 100,000 Americans this year?  How come we are being told the former is the crisis--while the latter is all but ignored?

No, I normally do not delve into national topics here on this blog unless there is some compelling local connection to Escambia County.  

And there is.

Some master-hypnotist media types and national-level bureaucrats/politicians (left-leaning, primarily) want you to forget all about the epidemic of opioid drug overdoses with fentanyl in America killing more than 100,000 yearly--- and instead---- want us all to focus on a primarily nonfatal disease that afflicts less than a 10th of the number of actual overdose deaths we will see in America this year.  They want you to believe MonkeyPox--a disease that is primarily spread among one sex and one very small segment of the population---and for which there is already treatments and a vaccine---is what EVERYONE must be terrified about right now.

But wait just a minute.  

We in Escambia County have pockets of areas and populations where there is a massive, unrestrained drug problem.  Massive.  We have a correspondingly massive increase in deaths and a huge number of citizens overdosing daily on opioids, primarily fentanyl.  And it is costing taxpayers millions of dollars dealing with it-- as our County EMS attends to nearly 6 overdoses daily in our county. (this figure does not include the overdoses that are dumped at emergency rooms nor does it count our sheriff's responses to overdoses)

By contrast--we have had ZERO Monkeypox cases as of the morning of this blogpost reported in our area as reported by the local media.  Nada.  Zilch.  Zero. (one suspected case occurred in Santa Rosa County two weeks back)  (UPDATE-8-23-22--I received a call from William Reynolds yesterday, publisher of NORTHESCAMBIA.COM, on an unrelated topic and he did let me know his outlet and channel 3 also both reported that our area has one (1) presumptive case of MonkeyPox.)  1 case of that, and 6 overdoses daily our EMS units are racing to.......

So why do some politicians and bureaucrats seek so desperately to get average citizens' eyes off the real ball with respect to the massive quanitites of Chinese fentanyl packs coming over the porous border with Mexico flooding America's states and cities?  Illegal crossings are hitting all-time highs and  many who cross are body-packing this dangerous China-manufactured drug like sherpas?  

Look at the "number of deaths" increases, directly in proportion to the surge in illegal border crossings over the last 3 years, and tell me THAT is not the pressing national health crisis upon which we should all be focusing?

Nope--it has to be MonkeyPox now.  Only MonkeyPox.  

Look, I feel for anyone who gets that awful disease.  It looks horrible from the pictures I have seen--horrible, awful, painful and unsightly.

But we know how to stop it, It is known which behaviors spread it and what the risk factors are, and there is treatment and a vaccine.

So instead of having David Muir lecture us and pontificate at us nightly --complete with a serious face--

IMPACT 100 Gives Pensacola a Huge Win in the Fight to Prevent Opioid Overdose Deaths

Health and Hope Clinic of Pensacola receives $106,000.00 to start a free distribution of NARCAN program locally

IMPACT 100 is one of the largest philanthropic organizations in the Pensacola area.  This organization consists of over 1,100 women from our community who each give $1,000.00 yearly to a fund that in turn donates this entire amount to multiple worthwhile nonprofits in the area. They give back 100% of their membership dues to charitable groups that benefit the community--this year that total is more than $1 Million Dollars.

IMPACT 100 groups are found throughout the nation and in Australia and Canada--however Pensacola's chapter is the largest in the world!  This year IMPACT 100 of the Pensacola Bay Area awarded 11 grants of $106,000.00 each to 11 very worthwhile recipients in our community.  NorthEscambia.com  did a nice succinct rundown of who won what in this article.

One 2019 recipient in particular will start a program to save lives locally, from day one of implementation of this grant, with the distribution of NARCAN to members of our community that request this lifesaving drug.  In addition to distribution of this NARCAN spray (which can be administered to someone who has overdosed on an opioid--and works even if the person is not breathing)-the award recipient, Health and Hope Clinic of Pensacola, will also begin a marketing and awareness campaign about NARCAN and how it can save lives.  Currently-there are faith-based health clinics around the state that are distributing this lifesaving drug--however before this program got funded Sunday the closest location where a citizen could get NARCAN spray for free was three counties away in Walton County!

With this grant award, the Health and Hope Clinic will bring this program where it is desperately needed--the greater Pensacola area.

Health and Hope Clinic of Pensacola receives $106,000.00 to start a free distribution of NARCAN program locally

Escambia County has joined a growing number of municipalities and counties nationwide in suing the companies that profited from these opioids that have taken so many lives.  The largest of these companies has already sought bankruptcy protection.

Meanwhile, thousands upon thousands of citizens overdose yearly nationwide.  Many by accident.  In 2017 alone in our 2-county area----more than 500,000 legal prescriptions for opioids were filled! These medications can be highly addictive within weeks for some users and sometimes, unfortunately, this leads to tragic consequences right here in our community.

Because when someone overdoses on these drugs, the breathing stops and permanent brain damage and/or death can occur within 6-7 minutes.

But this NARCAN spray, if sprayed into the nostrils of someone who has passed out, can bring them back from the overdose and save them.

The IMPACT of this grant is it will save lives locally---and that is a great thing!

Thanks IMPACT 100 and congratulations to the Health and Hope Clinic of Pensacola!

Regional Leadership Panel Discussion With Congressman Gaetz Happens Today at 1:00PM

Today beginning at 1:00 PM Congressman Matt Gaetz will convene a Western Hemisphere field hearing at the National Museum of Naval Aviation.  The Board of County Commissioners Chairmen from each of the Panhandle Counties are all invited to participate, as are several law enforcement and legal professionals from the region and also from around the nation.  From Congressman Gaetz's office:

"The purpose of this event is to engage in meaningful discussion relating to drug trafficking and terrorism in the Western Hemisphere. Congressman Gaetz would like to specifically examine some of the following topics during the panel discussions:

• Effective implementation of policy and proper allocation of resources to support drug interdiction efforts and combat terrorism in the Western Hemisphere
• Collaboration of Venezuelan officials with Hezbollah and Venezuela’s support of terrorism
• Hezbollah integration with criminal networks in South America
• Hezbollah fundraising in the South American region
• The role and resources of Northwest Florida and capabilities to support
• Operations in the Gulf of Mexico related to transnational organized crime
• Identifying and targeting major trafficking organizations and corridors for illicit drug exports to the United States

Congressman Gaetz’s goals are to identify main threats, receive recommendations to target those threats, and to develop and execute a plan on how Congress can assist in combating and eliminating those threats."

What Do You Do When Your Friend is Stealing and Abusing Your Prescription Pain Meds?

What would you do if you found out your friend was stealing your prescription pain meds for many months running?

What a difficult situation.  And then to complicate it--nobody does anything about it when it is reported.

What a conundrum.

Here is what I was told by a constituent(names and other information redacted).  Now I'm not a cop and I'm not a psychologist--I'm just a commissioner.  But I have a response for this constituent and below her email is my response.....

"I came to the XXXXXXXXXXXX to file a report @ catching a thief in my car back in December. Yes, I know they can't do anything now but I wanted to at least to give a sworn statement & have it on record because since me coming out on XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX, 5 other people have also come forward with similar stories surrounding this person. I was told no,  it was too late to file a report. .  

This has caused me great concern & I'm worried not just for my own safety but the new people in XXXXXXXX who see this person on XXXXXXXXXXXXx & believe XXXXXXX represents us. XXXXXX does present well by XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX & is vocal XXXXXXXXXXXXX. But XXXXXX is staining the values we represent in the XXXXXXXXXXXX& I don't want anyone else to be a victim. 

XXXXXX was my friend & I knew XXXXXXXhad a problem with XXXXXXXX but to see XXXXXX in my vehicle digging through my purse XXXXXXXXXXX devastated me. I had been missing pills from my prescription bottles for months but couldn't figure out who it was or when it could've happened. Every month they kept going missing - first just 5 or 6, then 10-15. I didn't report it right then & there because and only because i was in shock. Our kids were there & I just wanted to get out of there. 

Fast forward 2 months later at XXXXXXXXXX. I'm talking to one of our XXXXXXXXXXX & I confide in him about what had happened. He tells me I'm not the 1st person that this had happened to. So I dug a little more and asked a few more questions to a few more XXXXXXXXX people & got the same answers. I posted a very vague,  but obvious to the victims, description of what happened to me & I got 3 messages privately telling me same stories. 

So at that point I figured XXXXXXXXX has a problem community member that needs to be on watch.