Trump readies opioid plan amid worries it lacks punch
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s long-awaited declaration that the opioid epidemic is a national emergency finally arrives this week, but some advocates are worried it won’t be backed with the money and commitment to make much difference.
Trump is expected to make the formal declaration and deliver a major speech on the topic Thursday, more than two months after he first announced that would be his plan.
There is concern the White House actions will be empty talk without a long-term commitment to paying for more addiction treatment: An emergency declaration would lack punch without money, said Andrew Kessler, who represents substance abuse treatment providers as a lobbyist in Washington.
“If there’s no new money to expand our treatment infrastructure, I don’t know what the punch is going to be,” Kessler said. He acknowledged declaring a national emergency “would put it in the national spotlight. Create buzz. Create talk.” But with news coverage of the opioid crisis already saturating front pages and newscasts, he said, “I don’t know how much more buzz we can generate.”
Some health advocates also worry devoting more public health resources to opioids could pull attention and resources from other health problems such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease. What’s needed, they say, are new funding streams and a willingness to work handin-hand with states and local governments.
“An emergency declaration without significant new funds will likely be unsuccessful. The problem is enormous and requires a similar investment in a comprehensive strategy that includes primary prevention,” said Becky Salay, director of government relations at Trust for America’s Health, a Washington-based public health research and advocacy organization.
The idea of declaring a national emergency was first raised in an interim report prepared by an opioid commission chaired by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and convened by the president earlier this year.
“The first and most urgent recommendation of this commission is direct and completely within your control. Declare a national emergency,” read the report from the group, which argued the move would empower Trump’s Cabinet to address the crisis and force Congress to dedicate more money to fighting overdose deaths.
Trump said in August he planned to adopt the recommendation, and claimed his team was working on documents to formalize the declaration. But his words spurred immediate pushback from some inside his administration who argued it wasn’t the best move.
Emergency declarations are typically reserved for natural disaster such as hurricanes, infectious diseases such as swine flu and bioterrorist threats such as anthrax, and Trump’s now-departed Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price argued publicly the administration could deploy the needed resources without a formal declaration.
As the weeks have passed, Christie appeared to grow impatient, telling an audience in New Jersey earlier this month it wasn’t “good that it hasn’t been done yet.”