America’s Opioid Crisis Intensifies as Politicians Allow SUPPORT Act to Lapse

The drug overdose crisis has intensified as efforts by politicians in Washington, DC, fail to remedy the issue devastating so many Americans, according to Politico.

The outlet reported Sunday that leaders from both sides of the aisle, as well as then-President Donald Trump, in 2018 recognized the problem and came together to support legislation that used billions of dollars to help tackle the issue hurting citizens.

However, the SUPPORT Act recently lapsed. The Politico report explained:

Even though 105,000 Americans died last year, Congress is showing little urgency about reupping the law since it expired on Sept. 30. That’s not because of partisan division, but a realization that there are no quick fixes a new law could bring to bear.

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Congress can continue to fund opioid-fighting efforts without passing a new version of the SUPPORT Act. But failing to pass another law forfeits the opportunity to try new approaches. That has advocates discouraged.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously approved the SUPPORT Act over the summer, but “that measure’s limited ambition suggests a reason for the lack of urgency to pass it,” the outlet said, noting the Senate’s ranking Republican serving on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Louisiana’s Bill Cassidy, proposed a bill regarding the issue.

Politico said no Democrat has done the same.

The article also said fentanyl accounts for most of the overdose deaths happening across the nation.

New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan recently told ABC News that national security authorities must work with public safety and law enforcement to stop the supply of fentanyl, according to Breitbart News.

He said, “[T]he reality is, things are getting worse. And we need to bring an all-hands-on-deck approach to battling this crisis here in New York City and around the nation.”

In February, an Axios-Ipsos Health Index survey found Americans viewed opioids and fentanyl as the top health threat in the nation, per Breitbart News.

In 2019, the outlet reported that “former vice president Joe Biden ‘supercharged’ America’s devastating opioid crisis through policies he backed as a U.S. Senator, cracking down on overdose prevention sites and making it riskier to call 911 if someone overdosed,” citing an article by Zachary Siegel that was published by Politico.

Breitbart News has covered extensively the issue of opioid addiction problems surrounding fentanyl.