Suzanne Youngkin on Combating Fentanyl Overdoses: “We are not going to sit
idly by”




ICYMI: Virginia First Lady Suzanne Youngkin is committed to stopping the
tragedy of fentanyl overdoses that continue to take the lives of Virginians.



Youngkin joined Julie Mason to discuss her initiative – It Only Takes One
<[link removed]> – to stem the tide of fentanyl overdoses in
the Commonwealth.Click here
<[link removed]>
or below to listen to the full interview.




<[link removed]>



“Every day in the Commonwealth of Virginia, an average of five Virginians die
from fentanyl poisoning. Just last year we lost over 2,000 Virginians just to
fentanyl overdoses,” Youngkin said. “It takes an amount of fentanyl the size of
a grain of salt to kill an individual. It is being laced into marijuana, into
vapes, into pressed pills that look exactly like prescription medication that
innocent Virginians are taking. We are not going to sit idly by and not spread
the word.”



Last week, the First Lady helped lead a training course on administering
naloxone, the antidote to a fentanyl overdose that can be critical to saving
lives.



“She is campaigning for more and more Virginians to get the training — it
takes a less than an hour — and to keep a recovery kit close at hand,” the
Richmond Times-Dispatch reported
<[link removed]>
.



This comes as Suzanne Youngkin recently launched an “all-hands-on-deck"
anti-fentanyl pilot program to prevent overdoses in the Commonwealth.



As the Washington Examiner reported
<[link removed]>
, Youngkin's program will bring together “numerous stakeholders, from the
attorney general’s office and the Department of Health to community partners,
including faith-based organizations, schools, and city emergency medical
services.”



The First Lady also penned an op-ed
<[link removed]>
in the Roanoke Times with Attorney General Jason Miyares stressing the need to
address this epidemic and highlighting the importance of the It Only Takes One
initiative, especially for young Virginians particularly susceptible to
fentanyl poisoning.



“Nearly 200 teens and college-aged youth die from fentanyl each year. Today,
it’s not a matter of if your child will be offered a pill laced with fentanyl —
it’s become a matter of when,” Youngkin and Miyares wrote. “These young people
were taken far too soon because of a highly addictive, illicit drug.



Suzanne Youngkin will continue to raise awareness about the dangers of
fentanyl and use her It Only Takes One Initiative to help stop the fentanyl
epidemic that continues to impact all Virginians.



“We are talking to Virginians about this danger. We are doing digital
advertising and putting up billboards. We are working in our school systems. We
are talking to faith-based communities YMCAs and youth sports leagues. We are
saying: please talk about this – there's no shame in acknowledging that this
sinister drug exists, so let’s step into the gap and support one another,”
Youngkin said
<[link removed]>
.




Paid for by Spirit of Virginia



Spirit of Virginia, PO Box 3950, Merrifield, VA 22116



This message was sent to [email protected]. Don't want to receive our
emails anymore?

Unsubscribe
<[link removed]>