Summit County residents who need ongoing opioid treatment must travel to the Salt Lake Valley because no methadone providers operate locally, the Park Record reported.

The county has the second-lowest rate of opioid-related emergency department visits in Utah. But fentanyl remains the most common opioid seen in Summit County, and 92% of fentanyl pills the county sent to the state for testing came back counterfeit.

About 80% of local overdose deaths involve polysubstance use, meaning an opioid combined with another drug or alcohol.

A community readiness assessment presented at the Aug. 3 Board of Health meeting scored Summit County at 2.72, placing the community in a "denial/resistance" stage. That rating reflects limited local recognition of opioid-related issues, according to the assessment. The results will shape the Prevention Division's five-year strategic plan and future grant applications as state opioid prevention funding faces significant cuts.

Separate readiness assessments are planned for the Latino community and community leadership groups.

Aaron Newman, director of behavioral health at the Summit County Health Department, said the absence of local methadone providers creates a gap for people who need what he called the most effective form of opioid treatment. Park City Hospital handles immediate overdose emergencies, but patients requiring ongoing care must leave the county.

"What we're seeing inundating the community are these counterfeit pills that, frankly, if you're taking one, you don't know what else it's mixed with, and that's where we see an increased level of lethality," Newman said.

To address the crisis, the county is expected to receive $1.2 million over 18 years from a nationwide opioid industry settlement. That works out to about $57,000 per year.

The Health Department is directing settlement money toward two programs. Inmates released from Summit County Jail receive a 30-day supply of their medication along with a treatment plan. A separate transitional housing program provides up to 12 months of housing for people with an opioid use disorder who are in treatment.

Newman identified five key risk factors for opioid addiction: unstable housing, social isolation, employment problems, a criminal history and living in a rural area. The transitional housing program targets several of those factors at once.

On the prevention side, the Health Department partners with three area school districts on education programs. Pamella Bello, the department's substance use prevention director, said parents should start talking to children about substance use around age 9. The department also educates adults on proper medication disposal to keep prescription opioids from reaching unintended users.

Residents can find information on opioid prevention programs and prescription disposal locations at summitcountyhealth.org/behavioral-health.