Nabarun Dasgupta, a researcher at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, won a MacArthur Foundation “genius” grant for his work understanding the U.S. overdose crisis and reducing deaths.
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One of this year's MacArthur genius grant winners has spent decades on the front lines of America's deadly opioid crisis. Nabarun Dasgupta is a researcher at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who also works on the streets, developing programs that help people who use drugs survive. NPR's Brian Mann reports. And please note: The MacArthur Foundation is a sponsor of NPR.
BRIAN MANN, BYLINE: Last year, Nabarun Dasgupta, who goes by Nab, was in his campus office, digging through stacks of local data on drug deaths that he describes himself as poring over, when he discovered something unexpected. Here's Dasgupta talking to NPR in 2024.
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NABARUN DASGUPTA: I looked state by state, and almost all the graphs were pointing down.
MANN: Dasgupta was one of the first scientists in the country to discover a historic, encouraging shift.
DASGUPTA: It was a complete shock that the numbers were going down at the same rate as they are now. I thought, this is hard to even talk about because after so many years of seeing overdose deaths, this is what we hoped for.
MANN: In recognizing Dasgupta's work, the MacArthur Foundation pointed to his pioneering research. They also learned about his work outside the laboratory. Starting out in rural North Carolina towns, Dasgupta helped create a national street drug sampling network, part of an early warning system that detects toxic chemicals laced with drugs sold by dealers. He also co-founded a national organization called Remedy Alliance/For the People, which distributes massive amounts of naloxone. This is a drug that reverses an opioid overdose. Maya Dow-Simkins is co-director of the Remedy Alliance.
MAYA DOW-SIMKINS: The work that Nab is doing is definitely saving the lives of tens of thousands of people.
MANN: Dow-Simkins says Dasgupta is one of the few researchers studying addiction who has deep sources of information and knowledge in the street communities where drug use occurs.
DOW-SIMKINS: There's often a disconnect. But Neb is different.
MANN: Dasgupta says he was stunned by the MacArthur Foundation's recognition of his work. He told NPR it was a bittersweet moment when he received the news. His team in Chapel Hill gathered for a ceremony in honor of one of Dasgupta's closest allies, a North Carolina drug-addiction activist named Louise Vincent. Vincent died in August after battling health complications caused by street drug use.
DASGUPTA: I went back to my office and closed the door because I needed a minute. And then I got a call from the fund. And I don’t know if it’s possible to cry tears of joy from one eye and grief from the other at the same time, but that’s exactly how it felt at that moment.
MANN: The MacArthur Foundation recognizes and supports Dasgupta's work at a time when it is under attack. The Trump administration is pushing to cut off funding and support for programs like Dasgupta's, known as harm reduction, that help people who use street drugs avoid serious illness and death. Critics say harm reduction may promote or prolong drug use, although these claims are not supported by research. Dasgupta said the data convinced him that harm reduction works to help people survive and recover. He also believes that offering medical help to people who can't or won't stop using drugs is the right thing to do.
DASGUPTA: I believe harm reduction is a problem-solving strategy based on the ancient wisdom that every life has dignity and value, regardless of what people put into their bodies.
MANN: Drug deaths are now at their lowest levels in the United States in half a century. However, fentanyl, methamphetamines and other substances are still responsible for more than 70,000 fatal overdoses per year. Dasgupta says this $800,000 breakthrough grant will help him continue the fight to save more lives.
Brian Mann, NPR News.
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