Trump declares national emergency on opioid abuse

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday declared the opioid epidemic a national emergency and said his administration was drafting papers to make it official.

“The opioid crisis is an emergency and I’m saying officially right now it is an emergency,” Trump told reporters in New Jersey. “We’re going to draw it up and we’re going to make it a national emergency. It is a serious problem, the likes of which we have never had.”

Trump spoke about a week after a White House commission on the opioid crisis led by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie recommended the president declare it a national emergency.

The declaration could help unlock more support and resources to address the drug overdose epidemic, such as additional funding and expanded access to various forms of treatment, and it gives the government more flexibility in waiving rules and restrictions to expedite action.

P/C PIXABAY CC