Drug addiction in the US is a massive public health crisis, with nearly 49 million Americans or about 1 in 6 people aged 12 and older battling a diagnosable substance use disorder. Drug overdoses are a leading cause of accidental death in the country. Synthetic opioids like fentanyl drive an alarming portion of the tens of thousands of fatal overdoses recorded each year.

Utah’s substance abuse statistics show a clear pattern: overdose risk remains serious, fentanyl has changed the danger level and alcohol-related harm is a serious risk. Utah substance abuse data shows that overdose deaths remain high and fentanyl is now one of the most dangerous drug threats.

Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) is a comprehensive, whole-patient approach designed to improve survival rates and help individuals reclaim their daily lives. Its primary functions include stopping withdrawal and cravings and preventing relapses and overdose.

Medication assisted treatment can be short or long-term treatment and is safe to use for months, years, or even a lifetime. The longer the treatment, the better the health outcomes. Methadone and buprenorphine (FDA Approved) prevent withdrawal symptoms and cravings.

Utah has the highest rate of drug usage within 30 days of arrest. (UT foundation.org) Utah and its local counties are splitting an estimated $616 million in nationwide opioid settlement funds to fight the addiction crisis. The funds are used to expand treatment in jails and rural areas. The Utah State Correctional Facility (USCF) does offer some substance use disorder (SUD) and rehabilitation programming, but many inmates cannot access it.

While MAT is recognized as a vital public health tool for opioid use disorders, incarcerated individuals in Utah prisons report being denied access to it or being told that resources are only available to a highly restricted number of people (UT Legislature). Yet they get funding every year to treat it as well as a one-time $1.25 million just last year.

The public fantasy is that incarceration “cleans people up.” The reality is that prison is one of the most efficient addiction accelerators in the country. When you strip someone of autonomy, strip them of safety, strip them of dignity and privacy, purpose and human touch, flood them with trauma, fear, boredom, and violence, they act surprised when they reach for something, anything that dulls the pain.

Prison does not fix addiction; it refines it. People get dumped back into the world with untreated addiction shaped by confinement. They overdose in days. Families bury their loved ones and the blame lands where it always does: on the individual, never on a system that trained them to be numb instead of healing.

People know withdrawal can kill. They know untreated addiction fuels violence, and mental collapse. They know people leave prison with shattered tolerance and zero support. They do nothing anyway.

Every county in Utah has collected opioid settlement money. What have they done with it? Why is there very little advertisement to offer help with MAT knowing it is life saving?

Reports from the Utah Foundation and the Utah Legislature note that 80% to 85% of prisoners in the state grapple with substance abuse problems so why are we only treating a restrictive amount of inmates instead of all you have substance abuse disorders? Why is someone’s treatment more important than another?

Misty Spell is a resident of Ogden.