Acting Health And Human Services Secretary Eric Hargan signed an order Friday to extend the public health emergency for 90 days. A post on the agency’s website, cited the continued consequences of the opioid crisis.
Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown was among a group of lawmakers who wrote to the president two weeks ago urging him to continue the health emergency.
Brown says too little action has been taken during the emergency declaration and they want a chance to work with the administration to fund needed resources.
“We need better education, prevention, and treatment facilities. And better really means scaling them up. Far too many people who are addicted die waiting to get treatment.”
The emergency declaration was the first recommendation from the president’s commission on the opioid crisis.
Trump’s proposal included expanded addiction treatment through telemedicine, a nationwide education program, and a shift in funds to provide more resources.
Many public health experts in the Ohio Valley Region say the declaration was a positive step toward combating the opioid epidemic. But many of the proposed programs have yet to get off the ground.
