Kansas City Responds to Fentanyl Crisis with New Overdose Investigators and Review Board

The city's new ordinance requires overdoses to be reported within 24 hours, as overdose deaths surpass homicide numbers in 2021.

Kansas City is hiring two overdose investigators as part of an effort to reduce the number of fentanyl-related deaths.
A new ordinance passed by the city council requires overdoses to be reported within 24 hours, giving the health department access to more current data, which previously could be up to two years old.
The Kansas City police have confiscated more than 134 pounds of fentanyl so far this year.
Mayor Quinton Lucas reported that there was a suspected overdose every day but one in 2022 in Kansas City emergency rooms.
Overdose deaths in Kansas City have surpassed homicide numbers in 2021, with fentanyl being a major contributor to the increase.
The new ordinance also establishes a review board to analyze real-time data on overdoses and devise strategies to address the issue; the board will include family members of overdose victims.