Innovative Response to Opioid Crisis

The Eastern Iowa Heroin Initiative, an innovative program created in 2015, is making a difference in addressing the drug addiction and overdose crisis in the state. The Initiative is funded by the Midwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area and is a joint venture of the United States Attorney’s Office and the Cedar Rapids Police Department. The Eastern Iowa Heroin Initiative (EIHI) uses a three-part strategy of enforcement, prevention, and treatment. Over the past six years, the EIHI has provided drug awareness programs, community action organizational efforts, first responder training, and detoxification and treatment services.

The EIHI, one of only two comprehensive opioid awareness and outreach programs in the country, is viewed as a key contributor to the downward trend in overdose deaths.

In 2018, deaths from opioid-related symptoms reached a ten-year low in Iowa. The EIHI, one of only two comprehensive opioid awareness and outreach programs in the country, is viewed as a key contributor to the downward trend in overdose deaths.

Recognizing the EIHI efforts, the Midwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area awarded the program the Outstanding Public Safety/Public Health Collaborative Effort award. Further, Cedar Rapids Police Officer Lindsay Powers, who coordinates the EIHI, received the Enrique Camarena Award from the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa. The Enrique Camarena Award is presented to law enforcement officers who have made a significant contribution in the field of drug prevention and who personify Agent Camarena’s belief that one person can make a difference.

The EIHI has conducted numerous town hall events to raise community awareness, training events for first responders to correctly handle an overdose scene and conduct a responsive investigation, naloxone (Narcan) administration training, training to medical professionals, and training to drug treatment and prevention specialists. As part of the enforcement efforts, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has prosecuted over 100 defendants for various felony-level opioid charges since October 2015 throughout the district. These prosecutions involved trafficking in opioids, including heroin, fentanyl, and other dangerous drugs. Many of the cases involved drug distributions that resulted in overdose death or injury.

The continued success of EIHI initiatives is even more crucial with the ongoing COVID-19 public health pandemic. Overdoses have started to increase again since March 2020. Isolation and other mental health factors appear to be contributing to increased drug usage and overdoses. Cedar Rapids Police officers now carry Narcan, an opioid-reversing drug. They have saved 15 lives in 2020 by administrating the medication to unconscious, non-breathing overdose patients.

For more information about the EIHI, please visit www.facebook.com/easterniowaheroininitiative.