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Opioid Recovery Efforts in Southern W.Va., Ohio Valley

West Virginia Morning
West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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West Virginia Public Broadcasting

On this West Virginia Morning, drug overdose deaths in the Ohio Valley continue to rise. And so do the risks of infectious diseases closely associated with needle drug use. Area health officials say the region’s opioid crisis is now a public health threat on multiple fronts. Aaron Payne reports that health groups with different specialties are teaming up and taking to the road to meet the challenge.

Also on today's show, the first county health department in the state to offer a mobile harm-reduction program is in Wyoming County, in southern West Virginia. It includes a traveling needle exchange that allows drug users to turn in used needles and get new ones -- and it goes to some of the county's most rural and isolated areas. As Molly Born reports, choosing the location has been the hardest part.

West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.

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