WASHINGTON D.C. – In an effort to combat the nationwide public health crisis surrounding heroin addiction which has grown dramatically in scope over the last decade, Representative Jackie Walorski (IN-02), a member of the House Bipartisan Task Force to Combat the Heroin Epidemic, met with fellow task force members Monday to hear from experts to continue to discuss drug treatment programs that can produce the most successful recovery rates among heroin users. The task force aims to develop best practices and foster interagency collaboration to address this growing heroin epidemic.
Walorski, who is also a member of House Veterans Affairs’ Committee, has been involved in discussions regarding the impact of drug addiction specifically as it relates to veterans. Last month, she wrote a letter to the Department of Defense Secretary Ashton Carter requesting more information regarding how the Defense Department (DoD) plans to minimize drug addiction after recent reports detailed a rise in the misuse of prescription drugs by members of the Armed Forces. In addition, prescriptions of four potent opiates to veterans have more than tripled since 9/11, contributing to drug abuse, addiction and suicide. Because of this, Walorski introduced legislation requiring the Department of Veteran Affairs report to state prescription drug-monitoring programs to more closely monitor the amount of narcotics prescribed to veteran patients.
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