On Friday, Senator Portman hosted a roundtable discussion with Congressman Mike Turner in Dayton on the heroin and prescription drug epidemic that has devastated southwest Ohio. Joined by Montgomery County Sheriff Phil Plummer, first responders, drug addiction and treatment stakeholders, and other community leaders, Portman and Turner discussed ways in which the federal government can be a better partner with state and local practices to combat this epidemic. Portman’s Comprehensive Addiction & Recovery Act will help communities like Dayton combat the challenges of addiction by initiating a comprehensive response that includes prevention, law enforcement strategies, addressing overdoses, expansion of evidence-based treatment, and support for those in, or seeking, recovery.
In a brief video shot after the visit, Portman recaps the roundtable discussion and highlights how CARA will help:
“It’s good to be here in Montgomery County with community leaders, talking about this heroin and prescription drug epidemic. It was an opportunity to talk to them about the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act and how it can be helpful to Dayton, Montgomery County and the region. There are a number of provisions in the legislation that help on education and treatment, longer-term recovery – but also to hear what’s actually going on here to locally to bring people together to solve this problem. Although the statistics are discouraging in terms of the number of overdoses and deaths, it’s encouraging to see what the community is doing… I look forward to helping with regards to our CARA legislation and providing more opportunities to address this problem.”
NOTE: As the author of the bipartisan CARA legislation, which was signed into law by President Obama on July 22, 2016, Portman has led the national effort to combat the drug epidemic that is devastating communities across Ohio and our country. His work has been praised by Ohio anti-drug advocates as well as editorial boards around the country. The legislation ensures that federal resources are focused on evidence-based prevention, treatment, and recovery programs that have proven effective in local communities so that it can make a difference in people’s lives:
The CARA law was drafted with the input of experts, those who deal with the problem of addiction every day and those who are in recovery. It helps address the opioid epidemic by promoting education and prevention, promoting treatment alternatives and reversing overdoses, helping veterans, and helping women and babies, as he wrote in the Cleveland Plain Dealer in August.
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