At Hope By The Sea and our affiliate programs, our team of addiction recovery professionals hopes that you are staying safe and have avoided the coronavirus. The highly contagious disease has infected nearly 3 million people around the globe, and 193,039 have died because of COVID-19.
America has the worst numbers by far, with 871,970 cases and 50,103 coronavirus-related casualties. Some states have done better than others in containing the spread of COVID-19, but new cases are reported in each state every day. New York is still leading the nation in total cases and deaths, but the number of new cases has slowed thanks to social distancing.
California has done pretty well in keeping the spread of the virus at bay. City, county, and state officials acted quickly when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) warned that a deadly virus was inbound for the United States.
As of today, the Golden State has 39,647 confirmed cases and 1,534 deaths; New York, on the other hand, has lost 20,982 of its citizens. Our thoughts and prayers go out to everyone around the world impacted by the pandemic; we’d like to express our condolences to all the grieving families.
While some states are acting against the guidance of public health officials and loosening restrictions, Southern California has done the opposite. A recent spike in deaths in Los Angeles and Riverside Counties led to swift action by officials. In Los Angeles, wearing face masks is now the law for both shoppers and workers at essential businesses. Beverly Hills even requires people to wear masks when they are taking walks.
Orange County officials strongly encourage employees at businesses to wear face coverings while at work, according to The Los Angeles Times. Riverside County citizens could be punished for ignoring the coronavirus face mask order. Those refusing to comply could be fined $1,000 per day.
“This is a valid order and enforceable by fine, imprisonment or both,” said Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco. “However, I need to make it perfectly clear to all residents of Riverside County: We will not be setting up a police state and this is not a declaration of martial law in Riverside County.”
Addiction Recovery Services Keep Their Doors Open
Government officials tightened border restrictions to prevent people from bringing the virus into the country. Perhaps an unforeseen byproduct of the above action is the flow of heroin, meth, and other illegal drugs into the United States has slowed dramatically, The Wall Street Journal reports. The acting administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Uttam Dhillon, said the methamphetamine supply has been most impacted.
“What we’re really seeing right now are supply-chain disruptions of nearly all illicit drugs,” Uttam Dhillon said in an interview. “You’ve got traffickers who just can’t move as freely as they could before without being quite obvious that they’re moving.”
While one might consider the news that fewer shipments of heroin a good thing, it could have deadly consequences. Drug dealers are cutting heroin and cocaine with fentanyl to stretch their supplies, according to clients at a harm-reduction nonprofit in Washington, D.C.
Men and women living with an opioid or stimulant use disorder need to know that the stuff they are buying could lead to an overdose. What’s more, the life-saving overdose reversal drug naloxone doesn’t always work on fentanyl.
With that in mind, we strongly encourage individuals struggling with substance use disorders to take steps toward addiction recovery. Addiction treatment is an essential service during the pandemic, and help is available to all who would like to heal from addiction.
Southern California Addiction Treatment
Please contact Hope By The Sea if you are living with an alcohol or substance use disorder. We provide many services and offer unique programs to meet the specific needs of each client. Our facility is strictly adhering to COVID-19 guidelines. Hope Starts Here!
