Purpose
The age-adjusted rate of fatal opioid overdoses in Michigan has more than tripled between 2010 and 2020.¹ Now more than ever, utilizing public health approaches is critical to stemming the tide of opioid overdoses in our state. In partnership with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS), the University of Michigan Injury Prevention Center (U-M IPC) established a study to examine the use of public health principles and strategies in Michigan’s opioid related legislation. The objectives of the opioid legislative analysis were to:
- Objective 1: Identify and track opioid-related legislation in two consecutive legislative sessions (2019-2020 & 2021-2022)
- Objective 2: Identify overdose prevention/intervention strategies in legislation
- Objective 3: Apply analytical lenses to identify public health approaches in legislation (e.g., intervention strategy, shared risk and protective factors (SRPF), health equity indicators, polysubstance use)