AUGUSTA

The number of drug overdoses in the state already has set another record for 2016, and the state’s top prosecutor said she hopes there will be an “all-hands-on-deck” approach to tackle the drug epidemic when lawmakers reconvene in January.

The number of overdose deaths through September exceeds the number for all of 2015, and the number will continue to grow with three months until year’s end, Democratic state Attorney General Janet Mills said on Monday.

“One person a day is dying from a drug overdose in Maine,” she said.

Maine and the rest of New England are dealing with an epidemic of addiction and deaths associated with fentanyl, heroin and prescription opioids.

All told, 286 Maine residents died of drug overdoses through the first nine months of this year. The total for 2015 was 272, the previous record high.

The chief culprit behind the current overdose spike is fentanyl, which is many times stronger and more lethal than heroin or morphine, officials said. A task force has been formed to address the state’s heroin epidemic, with three teams focusing on law enforcement, education and treatment.

Mills said that solving the problem will involve law enforcement targeting big dealers, along with expanded access to detox beds and long-term treatment.

“With a new legislature convening soon, we need an all-hands-on-deck approach to combat this epidemic in a smart, nonpartisan and comprehensive way,” she said.

Republican Gov. Paul LePage’s administration has criticized the Legislature in the past for not moving fast enough, but he has said he agrees on the course of action. He has said that fighting the problem requires a mix of education, working with doctors on prescribing practices, beefing up law enforcement and encouraging treatment options.

A poll conducted by the University of New Hampshire for the Portland Press Herald last summer underscored the extent of the drug crisis in Maine. It indicated six in 10 Maine residents, roughly 780,000 people, know someone who has used heroin or abused prescribed opiate painkillers.

Poll proof

• A POLL conducted by the University of New Hampshire last summer underscored the extent of the drug crisis in Maine. It indicated six in 10 Maine residents, roughly 780,000 people, know someone who has used heroin or abused prescribed opiate painkillers.