MEDIA STATEMENT
PORTLAND, OR – Today, President Trump directed the Department of Health and Human Services to declare the national opioid crisis as a public health emergency. While community efforts throughout Oregon have helped reduce opioid prescribing by approximately 20% in the past year, Oregon still has one of the highest rates of opioid misuse in the nation-ranking in the top five of states with highest non-medical use of prescription pain medications.
As we await details of how this declaration will impact Oregon, Lines for Life will continue advocating for expanded efforts to address the opioid crisis — from prevention through treatment and recovery supports.
“We welcome the White House engagement in the opioid crisis — with over 60,000 Americans dying from drug overdose last year, it’s clear that the opioid crisis must be a national priority,” said Dwight Holton, Chief Executive Officer of Lines for Life.
“The single most important tool for escaping the opioid crisis right now is access to addiction treatment,” Holton continued. “If President Trump is serious about the opioid crisis, I urge the president to promise to veto any health care bill that strips Americans of insurance coverage for addiction.”
No community is exempt from the prescription drug abuse crisis. “It’s not hard to understand why when you look at how many people have access to pain medications,” says Holton. “We sell in Oregon every year 220 million opioid pills; that’s 50 for every man, woman and child.” In 2015, 331 Oregonians died from prescription opioid overdose.
Mental illness and addiction are human issues that must be solved through collaboration, vigilance, and increased access to resources. Lines for Life will continue to fight the battle against opioids through our work with partners across the state including our Oregon Coalition for the Responsible Use of Meds and Governor Brown’s Opioid Epidemic Task Force.