Natick Heroin Problem Could Get Worse: Police Chief

Natick, MA - Natick has a serious heroin problem and it is likely to get worse unless something is done about it.
    That is the sharp message delivered by Police Chief James Hicks in a talk to the Charles River Rotary Club on April 3rd.  The talk comes on the heels of the deaths of two young Natick adults over the last six months.
    "There will be more deaths if we stick our heads in the sand," said Chief Hicks.  
    In 2012 the town had 15 or 16 reported overdoses, he noted.  There have been eight overdoses so far this year in the town.  In Middlesex County as a whole, 38 people have died from heroin overdoses this year.
    Chief Hicks said the problem is heroin is cheap and it is being laced with Fentanyl, a powerful narcotic more potent than morphine that is used in hospitals to relieve pain.  Combining the drugs makes the resulting high stronger and longer.
    Chief Hicks said the community needs to take positive steps to stop the epidemic. "I can't solve the problem alone because I don't have the resources," he said.  "We have to understand we have a problem. This is going to overtake us unless we all get together."
    Governor Deval Patrick last week declared a public health emergency after a series of overdoses across the state. Immediate steps include allowing first responders to carry Narcan, a drug that can reverse a heroin overdose. Patrick also banned a drug named Zohydro and tightened the monitoring of prescriptions.
    Chief Hicks called for more community involvement to ensure kids in schools receive an anti-drug message from many sources, including peers, family and friends. He lauded the efforts of community groups such as Natick Forever for Youth, which is doing a study to see what is needed to improve the situation, such as developing ways to support students under stress who seek a way out, and seeing how to create support groups for families with members who are addicts.
    Chief Hicks also said the message must be clear, that the roots of heroin use lie in the habits acquired by students when they are in their early teens. "They started as teens and they started with alcohol and marijuana," said Chief Hicks.
    He disagreed with messages that suggest "it is OK that they try alcohol and marijuana."  Instead he said the message must clearly and consistently oppose that message. "Is it OK to continue with that opinion considering what we're seeing with our kids?" he asked.
    More community meetings on the heroin problem can be expected in coming months.