Illicit drugs mixed with a highly potent opiod results in a rash of overdose deaths in Winnebago County. Over a nine-day period in November, eight people died as a result of suspected overdoses. Stephanie Gyldenvand, a Community Health Strategist with the Winnebago County Health Department, says this rash of overdose deaths is likely caused by drug users who may not realize what’s in their drugs of choice.
Gyldenvand says some of those deaths could have been prevented if Narcan, which counteracts overdoses, had been immediately available. She says it’s easily accessible in Winnebago County.
