In Crisis: The Opioid Epidemic

Nearly five years since the Department of Health and Human Services first declared a public health emergency to combat the longstanding opioid epidemic, the crisis rages. The combination of the pandemic response, stress and burnout of the public health workforce and a national mental health crisis are contributing to the record setting number of drug overdose deaths. In this session, we examine promising initiatives, like harm reduction and improved data systems, dedicated to reducing the opioid epidemic in cities and states across the country.

Speakers

Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, Chief Medical Executive, State of Michigan

Rebecca Baker, Director of the Helping to End Addiction Long-term® Initiative, or NIH HEAL Initiative®, Office of the Director, NIH

Cassandra Price, Director, Office of Addictive Diseases, Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities

Alisha Powell Gillis, Senior Editor, Route Fifty