From left: Sen. Chris Coons, U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy James Carroll, Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings, U.S. Attorney General Delaware district David Weiss, and HERO Help coordinator Daniel Maas, speak at a special symposium to address Delaware’s ongoing opioid crisis on Thursday, Aug. 22, at the University of Delaware’s STAR Campus.

At a panel organized by Sen. Chris Coons and UD’s Partnership for Healthy Communities, speakers from law enforcement, public health and social services discussed ways to mitigate the opioid crisis, which in 2018 resulted in almost 400 deaths in Delaware. Several panelists pointed to state initiatives, including a collaboration between police and substance abuse treatment professionals, as examples of effective strategies.