It’s no secret Baltimore — Maryland as a whole — has an opioid problem.
In the latest effort to prevent overdoses, faith leaders and other organizations gathered for a community forum in South Baltimore.
The forum’s goal is to eliminate overdoses in all communities.
Who’s most at risk?
Community leaders and organizations gathered Tuesday for the Faith in Community Opioid/Overdose Forum at the Middle Branch Fitness and Wellness Center.
They learned the obstacles and how to provide access to treatment and recovery better.
The forum was organized by Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller, Maryland’s Office of Overdose Response, and the Governor’s Office of Community Initiatives.
“Government alone cannot do it, non-profits alone can’t do it. We need our faith leaders, our activists, people who will share their stories so we can remove the stigma,” Miller said. “Know that addiction is a disease, it’s not a moral failure.”
Emily Keller, Special Secretary of Overdose Response, shared some of the state’s latest data on fatal overdoses in her opening remarks.
Overall, fatal overdoses are down statewide. In 2021, the state reported a record high of 2,800. In 2024, only 1,768 were reported, marking a 37% decrease.
There were also decreases in nearly all demographic groups. However, disparities are still very present in Black men 55 and older.
The fatal overdose rate for these men is nearly 400% higher than the state average, according to Keller.
There have been 675 overdose deaths from January to August in 2025, according to the state’s overdose dashboard.
Forum takeaways
Dr. Mike Beane, a minister at New Bethlehem Baptist Church in West Baltimore and a retired superintendent for facility maintenance for the city, has seen firsthand what opioids and other substance abuse can do to people. So, he’s tried to help.
“My heart has led me to talk to people and evangelize people about doing something different,” Beane said. “Changing their lives.”
But he wants to do a better job. It’s why he came to the Faith in Community Opioid/Overdose Forum at the Middle Branch Fitness and Wellness Center on Tuesday.
A big theme of the forum was for faith leaders to truly meet their communities where they are — to understand the communities’ problems.
“You have to understand what this is all about from a historical, psychosocial perspective,” said Imam Earl El-Amin of the Muslim Community Cultural Center of Baltimore. “Then be able to tie your scripture and be able to help these individuals have hope, to help these individuals to be healed.”
It’s a message that Beane took to heart.
“Hopefully we’ll be able to deter people from going in that direction,” he said.
Baltimore’s mass overdose
On July 10, nearly 30 people were hospitalized for drug overdoses in Baltimore’s Penn North neighborhood.
The overdoses prompted advocates and community partners to flood the Penn North community with resources and as part of an aggressive harm reduction effort.
Leaders with the Mayor’s Office of Overdose Response and the city Health Department handed out Narcan and shared information about addiction treatment centers in the area.