WHATCOM COUNTY, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Whatcom County has seen a promising drop in overdoses after announcing steps earlier this year to address the fentanyl crisis.

According to whatcomoverdoseprevention.org, Emergency Medical Services (EMS) dispatch calls for overdoses have declined in every month since May, as have reported overdose deaths.

However, county health leaders say that downward shift cannot be directly attributed to the county’s actions to address the crisis. Whatcom County Health and Community Services director Erika Lautenbach says similar trends are being reported in other areas of the state and along the west coast.

Still, the county has made progress on a series of actions it announced in April to combat the fentanyl crisis, as Lautenbach explained at a county council hearing Tuesday, Oct. 1. She says the county has been recommended for a nearly $8 million grant to fund rehabilitative housing for people emerging from the criminal justice system.

The county has also installed four free naloxone vending machines with plans to add five more this fall in areas that have less access to the overdose prevention medication.

As for the future, Lautenbach says there are several projects in the works that will offer support for intervention and treatment services. The Way Station is opening in downtown Bellingham this month and a 23-hour crisis care facility will break ground in summer 2025.