Mandatory Reporting of Fatal and Nonfatal Opioid Overdoses in a Rural Public Health Department.

In 2016, Clallam County became the first county in Washington State to mandate reporting of fatal and nonfatal opioid overdoses. This reporting improved our understanding of opioid overdoses in the community and allowed us to provide harm reduction and case management services after nonfatal overdoses. By using the Washington State Prescription Monitoring Program, we have been able to notify health care providers when their patients have experienced a fatal or nonfatal opioid overdose to help better guide their prescribing practices.