The scourge of the opioid epidemic is now more than a decade old.

Sullivan County, New York, has been far from immune to the damage inflicted by opiate abuse.

Beginning in 2013 and through 2022 (as per the New York State Opioid Dashboard), Sullivan County has the highest death rate from opioid overdoses of all 62 New York State counties. Sullivan County suffered the highest overdose death rates per 100,000 residents in 2013, 2014, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2022.

The New York State Opioid Dashboard has indicated in every year from 2010 through 2022 that Sullivan County New York is an “area of high concern.”

The New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supplies (OASAS) paints a similar bleak picture, indicating that Sullivan County, New York suffered from the highest overdose death rate from 2019 through 2023.

Thankfully, due to the efforts of countless agencies, Sullivan County saw a 21% reduction in fatal overdoses from 2023 to 2024. Spearheading the drive to make a difference has been the Village of Liberty Police Department and Chief Steve D’Agata. Chief D’Agata played a key role in implementing the Hope Not Handcuffs (HNH) program in the Liberty Police Department and the further extension into all of Sullivan County.

Chief D’Agata was recently named the Chair of the Public Safety Council for The Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (PAARI) and has been a dedicated member of PAARI’s Public Safety Council and a longtime partner in the organization’s mission to expand access to treatment and recovery.