Visitors to a 10-city region in Orange County, California, with a large concentration of substance use disorder treatment centers experience disproportionately high levels of overdose, according to a new study led by a researcher at Penn State.
Out-of-state visitors to this region had the most pronounced levels. They were 159% more likely to experience a drug overdose when visiting this region compared to other parts of the state. The study was published in the journal Substance Use & Misuse.
"You'd expect that in a place where there's a lot of treatment centers, there would be a buffer against relapses and overdoses. But our study shows that this area of Orange County, where there is an abundance of treatment centers, is a hotspot for overdoses, especially for out-of-state visitors," said Ilan Shrira, lead author of the study and a social psychologist at Penn State. "One possible explanation may be the lack of oversight in the industry, allowing for fraudulent and predatory practices by some bad actors that can harm those seeking treatment and contribute to overdose risk."
Substance use disorder treatment programs are an effective means to reduce the risk of continued drug use and of overdose, the researchers explained. Previous studies in the field have shown that the presence of treatment centers in a community predicted lower rates of overdose and death in the surrounding area.
However, while working on a different study, Shrira said he detected an overdose hotspot in Orange County even though it's home to a high concentration of substance use disorder treatment facilities. This coastal region just south of Los Angeles, known for its beaches and luxe towns like Newport Beach and Laguna Beach, has become a popular recovery destination for visitors from other parts of the country.
