Islip Town's Opioid-Heroin Task Force held a meeting Monday night on how to tackle the growing opiod crisis on Long Island.

A panel of experts from law enforcement, drug treatment and prevention, education and family support backgrounds were present.

Veteran News 12 reporter Drew Scott is co-chair of the Islip Town Opioid-Heroin Task Force. He lost his 22-year-old granddaughter to an overdose last year.

"When people are aware there's a drug epidemic and they don't let the stigma quiet them down and keep them from communicating with their neighbors and friends - then people get the message and they're careful and they watch their kids and young people," he says.

Scott also says there were 700 opioid overdoses in 2017.

He says the task force's goal is to one day make sure that number is zero.