On January 1, 2023, California Gov. Gavin Newsom passed The Campus Opioid Safety Act to respond to and reduce opioid-related overdoses and deaths. The bill aims to educate college students on the risks of opioids by offering life-saving training and access to free opioid-reversal medicine on college campuses.
Fentanyl is an illicit synthetic opioid that is deadlier than any other drug on the market and scarily easy to access. It is tasteless, colorless, and odorless, which makes it easy to distribute and disguise as other drugs, like prescription pills. Fentanyl is an invisible killer with a lethal toxicity of two milligrams, which is equal to about 15 grains of salt. It is 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times more fatal than morphine, according to dea.gov.
The recent surge in fentanyl abuse and distribution has led to a national health crisis, with synthetic opioids being the leading cause of fatal overdoses in the United States since 2019. Due to its high potency, fentanyl is easy and cheap to smuggle because it can be hidden and packed in tiny quantities. Individuals, mainly U.S. citizens, are illegally obtaining fentanyl and trafficking it into the country through ports of entry like international airports, borders, and seaports.
Kern County is not immune to the fentanyl epidemic; the local coroner’s office shared that nearly 300 people died in 2023 due to fentanyl-related overdoses, an 18% increase since 2021.
Due to this increase, Kern County’s Synthetic Opioid Response Team investigates all lethal and non-lethal opioid/fentanyl overdoses. Most of them are accidental, meaning the victim unknowingly ingested the drug, also known as fentanyl poisoning. Studies show that college students are at greater risk of drug and alcohol abuse and addiction, which is why the Campus Opioid Safety Act is vital to preventing future overdoses and deaths.
“Narcan is a crucial step in evolving education on opioid use, especially on college campuses,” said CSUB senior Alexandria Blan on the requirement for CSU colleges to distribute opioid reversal medication. “This policy not only provides a life-saving tool in case of overdoses but also highlights the University’s commitment to student health and wellbeing.”
The opioid crisis is worsening, and colleges want students to be armed with the proper tools and information to keep themselves and their peers safe. CSUB is committed to educating students about the risks of fentanyl and how to handle an opioid overdose properly.
“Due to the rise of Fentanyl related deaths in Kern County over the last few years, it is very important that CSUB students are educated on the dangers of fentanyl, and how to access and use Narcan,” wrote CSUB’s Health Education Coordinator, Lauren Hedlund.
“Narcan is a nasal spray that can be administered by anyone, so we encourage our students to know how to use it, should they ever find themselves in a situation where it’s needed,” said Hedlund.
CSUB provides free Narcan through the federally funded Naloxone Distribution Project. Students can pick up a box at the wellness vending machine inside Student Health Services. Upstander training for administering Narcan is available on the CSUB website. Narcan is relatively easy to administer, training is minimal, and it only takes about 15 minutes to complete remotely. For more information visit student health services at csub.edu.
