Worcester City Manager Edward Augustus Jr.'s office on Friday denied a series of anti-opioid videos were released ahead of November's election as a political move, an accusation made by City Councilor Michael Gaffney.
WORCESTER – The start of a public service announcement campaign about the dangers of opioids is due to the videos’ completion dates, not the upcoming election, according to a spokesman for City Manager Edward Augustus Jr.’s office.
Augustus this week announced a series of 13 PSAs that address the ongoing fight with opioid addiction.
The videos, in English and Spanish, address subjects like where resources can be found, signs of addiction parents can look for and information on where to dispose of unused prescriptions.
The videos were produced by the city’s Division of Cable Services, in cooperation with the Division of Public Health and the City Manager’s Office. They feature not only Augustus, but members of the Bravehearts, Police Chief Gary Gemme, recovering addicts and parents of addicted children.
Some of the videos also feature Mayor Joseph Petty District 4 City Councilor Sarai Rivera, a fact that caused an angry exchange between Rivera and At-Large Councilor Michael Gaffney Thursday night during a subcommittee meeting on health and human services, which Rivera is chairwoman of and Gaffney is a member.
The argument began after a resident criticized the first PSA for not featuring recovering addicts who can speak better to the issues than city officials. Gaffney, while addressing other topics, said he would not address the PSAs beyond the fact that he did not appreciate the timing. Gaffney is running against Petty for mayor and Rivera has an opponent in the Nov. 3 election.
Rivera responded that she had done the videos because she serves as chairwoman of the committee, and because the issue is personal for her as a reverend and social worker.
On Friday, Communication Specialist John Hill, of Augustus’ office, said the videos have just been released because they have only recently been completed.
“They were just finished, which is why they are being rolled out now,” Hill said in an email. “We started working on them in late May as part of a number of initiatives over the summer to increase awareness of the problem and of resources available for those seeking help
Hill said other initiatives undertaken by the city include Clean Living Forum held at St. Vincent’s Hospital in August, a campaign to get people to turn in prescription drugs and a social media campaign.
The PSA’s are running on Charter TV3 this week, and on the city’s youtube page.
Source: MassLive Worcester http://masslive.com/news/worcester
