Republican proposes near-real-time overdose dashboard ahead of 2026 session

(The Center Square) – Hoping to curtail the state’s opioid epidemic, one Republican proposed a bill Thursday that would establish a near-real-time overdose mapping interface with guardrails for privacy.​

The proposal follows an 11.7% decrease in opioid overdoses last year, according to the Department of Health. However, overdoses increased 44.2% from 2019 to 2020, 35.6% in 2021, 26.5% in 2022, and 37.6% in 2023, peaking at 2,819. The trend is leveling off, but it skyrocketed 259% from 2016 to 2024.​

Last year, DOH data showed Asotin County, Yakima County, Spokane County and other rural areas as having the highest overdose death rates statewide. Representing much of the Yakima region...