County Commission | The Magazine July 2019 | Page 11

FROM THE COVER
officials have the opportunity to make
a positive impact on people with
opioid use disorders through recovery
services both before and after they
become involved in the justice
system — through law enforcement
diversion efforts, in court, in jail and
upon release.
HOW CAN ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT
STRATEGIES HELP
ADDRESS THE OPIOID
CRISIS?
A
The economic impacts of the
opioid epidemic have been
tremendous. One report
showed that between 1999 and
2015, opioids reduced labor force
participation by 2 million workers,
yielding a cumulative loss of $1.6
trillion to the U.S. economy. Whether
the correlation between decreases
Refocus: Resolving the
Nationwide Opioid Crisis
Opening General Session
8:30 a.m. | Wednesday, Aug. 21
in the labor force and increases in
opioid overdose deaths are causal
or coincidental is still unclear;
nevertheless, economic hardship is
one factor that is contributing to the
spread of the opioid epidemic.
County leaders must consider
the importance of economic
and workforce development in
conjunction with recovery services to
alleviate the effects of the economic
downturn happening alongside
the opioid crisis and prevent the
continued spread of opioid misuse.
In some counties, opioid misuse is so
prevalent that businesses are unable
to find workers who can pass a drug
test. County leaders can develop
programs to help connect individuals
in recovery to jobs and job training,
as well as help businesses learn to
work with these individuals, to spur
economic development and fill gaps
in the workforce. n
COUNTY COMMISSION | 11