Ten percent of those prescribed develop use disorder.”

Opioid Prevention Program Coordinator James Johnson

From 2022-2023, Dakota County experienced a 4.4% increase in opioid overdose deaths, 45 fatalities in 2022 and 48 in 2023.

To participate in the survey, scan the QR code alongside this article.

Robert Trail Library
14395 S Robert Trail
Rosemount, MN 55068
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Teachers, therapists, doctors, police officers, county officials and community members all spoke at the 2024 Opioid Settlement Annual Meeting held on Nov. 7 at the Robert Trail Library in Rosemount. The expanse of professionals speaking to the issue of opioids in Dakota County not only underscores the profundity of opioid addiction in the county, but the deep cross section of residents it affects.
Minnesota and the United States both experienced a spike in opioid use during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Those numbers are just starting to fall but largely remain above pre-pandemic levels. Nationally, opioid use has dropped 12.7% from May 2023-May 2024 and Minnesota largely followed that trend with a 12.83% decrease in overdose fatalities in the same timeframe. Dakota County did not follow suit.
From 2022-2023, Dakota County experienced a 4.4% increase in opioid overdose deaths, 45 fatalities in 2022 and 48 in 2023.
“I don’t want to overemphasize national trends going down because we have to pay attention here,” said Opioid Prevention Program Coordinator James Johnson, who presented at the meeting
Dakota County is set to receive some $16 million to address the effects of the opioid crisis from various pharmaceuticals and drug makers as part of multi-state lawsuits. These funds will be received by the county through 2038 and will fund various programs meant to mitigate the damage caused by opioids.
As shown by the cross section of professionals at the meeting, the opioid crisis is a vast issue spanning schools, hospitals and law enforcement. To begin the discussion, Johnson started all the way upstream of the issue at opioid dispense rates.
“Ten percent of those prescribed develop use disorder,” said Johnson.
It is a sobering fact speaking to the sheer addictive nature of these drugs. Because of that figure, states are increasingly looking to dispense rates of how often and how many opioids get prescribed to communities. That figure has dropped from 3.1 million prescribed opioids in 2017 to 2.1 million in 2022. While Minnesota is amongst the states with the lowest opioid dispense rates in the nation, Dakota County still has not curbed the growing trend of opioid overdose deaths since the beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Before the pandemic, Dakota County had an elevated number of opioid-related deaths, far outpacing other Twin Cities metro counties like Washington, Carver, and Scott. Those elevated numbers spiked in 2020, nearly doubling from 23 opioid overdose deaths in 2019 to 40 in 2020. They have not gone down since.
A key change in the approach of dealing with opioid overdose deaths is the legalization and proliferation of Naloxone, the opioid antagonist that is FDA approved to quickly reverse an opioid overdose. The 2023 legislative session mandated a Naloxone Standing Order which compels schools, sober homes, correctional facilities and Department of Human Services (DHS) programs to have Naloxone available in case of emergencies.
In Dakota County this standing order has allowed local libraries to carry and give away Naloxone for residents to keep in their homes. Much of the conversation surround Naloxone has become akin to AEDs or fire extinguishers where the goal is to simply get more of them out into the community.
Another facet of addressing opioids in Dakota County has been the creation of the Opioid Response Action Committee (ORAC), a committee that “supports the development of a comprehensive and effective countywide response to the opioid crisis. It provides recommendations to the county board on the use of Opioid Settlement Funds for external projects and initiatives,” according to Dakota County’s website.
ORAC boasts dispensing test strips as well as nasal and intramuscular Naloxone, but Johnson admits “This is just a drop in the bucket.”
ORAC meets the first Tuesday of every month with the next meeting to discuss the 2025 Strategic Plan set for 3 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 3, at the Northern Service Center in room 110C. Meetings are open to the public.
The public can also participate in Dakota County’s Community Input Survey in order to help decide “how to best distribute Opioid Settlement Funds to residents, community members, organizations, and other stakeholders who have been affected by the opioid epidemic, or those simply concerned with the issue,” according to the survey. To participate in the survey, scan the QR code alongside this article.