Impacts of Covid-19 pandemic on Opioid Overdose Death: A Bayesian Interrupted Time-Series Analysis

Keywords: Opioid, COVID-19, interrupted time series analysis, public health disparities, segregation
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Tuesday
Session Start / End Time: 3/1/2022 09:40 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 3/1/2022 11:00 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 16

Abstract

In this research, we comprehensively examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the corresponding stay-at-home order on overdose deaths in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. We selected Milwaukee to study the effects of Covid-19 on racially diverse metropolitan regions, as it is one of the most racially and economically segregated counties in the U.S., with dramatic racialized health disparities. Our past research on Milwaukee's pre-pandemic opioid crisis noted that the factors that influenced opioid overdose deaths pandemic varied across racially diverse communities in Milwaukee County. Using georeferenced data from the Milwaukee Counter Medical Examiner and spatial analysis techniques such as interrupted time series analysis, we examine the locational and demographic differences in overdose deaths over time. after the lockdown order, the monthly opioid overdose death had an average value of approximately 46.44. In the absence of a pandemic and lockdown, we would have expected an average monthly opioid overdose death of 34.17 Summing up the individual data points during the post-intervention period, the monthly opioid overdose death had an overall value of 418. Had the pandemic not taken place, we would have expected a sum of 307.51. In relative terms, the monthly opioid overdose death showed an increase of +36%. The overdose death pattern is persistent in Milwaukee County and primarily affecting the communities of color, particularly African Americans and Hispanics; the policies, resources, and interventions that are being designed and implemented in Milwaukee County are primarily benefiting White communities.