SAFE Project and NAMSDL work together to closely follow federal action on the addiction crisis.
“SAFE Takes” specifically examines progress made in each of the recommendations made by the President’s Commission on Combatting Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis (November 2017) and the Governors’ Recommendations for Federal Action to End the Nation’s Opioid Crisis (January 2018).
NAMSDL and SAFE Project examined these federal recommendations through the lens of SAFE’s six lines of operation. Our team researched and analyzed the current progress in federal action, and provided our “take” on where each recommendation has or hasn’t shown progress. This unique analysis is through the lens of SAFE’s six areas of focus, and coordination of national priorities in state and local communities. “SAFE Takes” can be used by government, communities, non-profits, public and private sector to understand gaps, challenges, and opportunities to positively impact this crisis.
The launch of significant policy response to our nation’s addiction epidemic can be traced back to three key factors in 2017 and 2018:
- In October 2017, the President of the United States directed the Department of Health and Human Services to declare the opioid crisis a “public health emergency.”
- In November 2017, the White House released “The President’s Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and The Opioid Crisis” (Commission).
- In January 2018, the National Governors Association (NGA) released “Governors’ Recommendations for Federal Action to End the Nation’s Opioid Crisis.”
*as of August 2021; final review pending
Our “SAFE Takes” on the White House and NGA legislation are categorized by the following topics:
from overdoses involving opioids since 1999.
The United States is in the midst of an opioid overdose epidemic to include overdoses involving prescription opioid medications, heroin, and illicit fentanyl (a powerful synthetic opioid medication that is increasingly being produced illicitly). ”
