Watch my recent CBS News segment on new overdose data. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Dear Friend,

I’m a social worker, a former addiction treatment provider, and I'm someone who's lost loved ones to the overdose crisis. I know we are all looking for solutions that will keep our loved ones alive.

We are seeing declines in overdose deaths for the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yesterday, I spoke with CBS News about the life-saving public health funding and community-based initiatives behind these numbers.
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These include:

-Increased access to naloxone, the overdose reversal medication.

-Expanded access to medications like methadone and buprenorphine that can decrease overdose risk by half.

-Increased funding to health and social supports including housing, overdose prevention, and recovery. ​​​​​​

We see these solutions working. But the Trump administration is using the legitimate fear of fentanyl to push enforcement policies instead, at the cost of effective health interventions. They would cut funds from programs that help Americans in their own communities, and instead use them to look for a needle in the haystack at the border.

We must continue to demand solutions that work. To save lives, it’s critical that elected leaders go all in on a public health approach to drugs.

Watch my full CBS clip to learn more about the decrease in overdose deaths and how funding public health initiatives supports our communities.
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And read my recent Q&A to learn more about how health and harm reduction approaches are decreasing overdose deaths.
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Best,
Dr. Sheila Vakharia
Deputy Director of Research and Academic Engagement
Drug Policy Alliance


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