WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is poised to declare the opioid epidemic a national emergency on Thursday, following through on a recommendation made nearly three months ago by a special White House commission tasked with addressing the crisis.
President Trump pledged on Oct. 16 to make such a declaration this week, and at a hearing on Wednesday, members of Congress outlined their expectation for Trump to declare the opioid crisis a national emergency the following day. An email from the Office of National Drug Control Policy obtained by STAT also invited a number of drug policy stakeholders to a Thursday afternoon “event on the nationwide opioid crisis” on the president’s behalf.
Public health experts expect the declaration to free federal resources to help stock adequate quantities of overdose reversal drugs, expand capacity for treating substance use disorder, and create financial incentives for health providers to better conform to industry standards of care like prescribing medication-assisted treatment.
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