INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller made the following statement in response to the U.S. Senate voting 94-1 in support of the Comprehensive Addiction Treatment and Recovery Act (CARA), which would provide for federal support of efforts at the state and local levels to address the opioid abuse crisis.
“Indiana and other states have been calling on the federal government to help us respond to the overwhelming heroin and prescription drug addiction crisis that is crossing state lines and impacting so many in our nation, and we’re finally seeing some activity,†Zoeller said. “More Hoosiers die from this scourge every day. There is desperate need for a stronger focus on successful addiction treatment strategies as well as more resources for these programs. The Senate’s critical vote dovetails with the recent proposal to boost federal funding to support overdose prevention and addiction treatment efforts at the state level. This is a public health emergency. We simply need all hands on deck.â€
CARA has not yet passed the U.S. House of Representatives, but the Attorney General urged that it be approved there as well and become law.
In September 2015, Zoeller led a bipartisan coalition of 38 attorneys general in urging the U.S. Congress to support CARA. A copy of the letter can be found here. Zoeller also recently met with U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy Director Michael Botticelli to offer his support of the increased funding proposal and urge that Indiana be part of this solution.
Zoeller is co-chair and creator of the Indiana Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention Task Force, which has worked to reduce the abuse of controlled prescription drugs and decrease the number of deaths associated with these drugs in Indiana since its creation in 2012. Currently, his office is coordinating a grant program to equip first responders with the opioid overdose antidote naloxone.
Visit www.BitterPill.IN.gov for more information and resources for the public on preventing addiction and getting help.
