SULLIVAN COUNTY — Sullivan County remains the Hudson Valley’s only county not designated as a High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) despite having the highest overdose death rate per capita in New York State.

Senator Chuck Schumer is trying to change that following a visit to Broadway in Monticello in April and more recently a phone call to Dr. Rahul Gupta, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

By lacking a HIDTA designation the county is missing out on federal support and additional resources that could help stop dangerous drug traffickers.

“That is why I personally called Director Gupta to urge him to approve Sullivan County’s request to become a HIDTA-designated zone, and give our local law enforcement the tools and intelligence they need to stop the scourge of opioids and deadly fentanyl from entering the Hudson Valley,” said Senator Schumer in a statement on July 6.

“We are appreciative of Senator Schumer’s continued advocacy against the opioid epidemic and his efforts to designate Sullivan County as a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. The comprehensive law enforcement tools and resources that a HIDTA designation provide would be very helpful as we continue to combat drug trafficking and related violence in our county,” added Sullivan County Sheriff Michael Schiff.

The numbers indicate that Sullivan County is the epicenter for opioid overdoses not only for the Hudson Valley, but all of New York State. As previously reported in the Democrat, 15 percent of all of the deaths in Sullivan County in 2021 were attributed to the overdose epidemic.

Schumer stressed to Director Gupta that, following his visit, more than 25 deaths in Sullivan County were attributed to the opioid crisis during the month of May alone, making up 30 percent of all deaths in the county. Schumer says the federal government needs to step in to assist the Sullivan County Drug Task Force with the HIDTA designation.

“Without that designation, we are foreclosed from pursuing additional re­sources to combat this problem.  Our State and local police forces are on the front lines of the opioid epidemic, and the efforts of our Drug Task Force would be well-served by strengthening our federal partnerships,” said Sullivan County DA Meagan Galligan.