Mt. Lebanon forum seeks new ideas to combat opioid crisis

A forum Wednesday in the heart of the suburban South Hills will explore some of the thorniest challenges faced by people recovering from opioid and heroin addictions, and aims to bring forth potential solutions, according to its organizer, state Rep. Dan Miller, D-Mt. Lebanon.

The six-hour event, headlined by Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro, will be different from the many opioidawareness events held throughout the state. It aims to “go deeper into the issues and figure out exactly where problems are occurring along the road to recovery,” said Mr. Miller, on Monday.

“I want concrete ideas,” he said. “What we have been doing is not sufficient. So we need to go, in my opinion, in a different direction.”

Starting at noon at St. Paul Episcopal Church on Washington Road in Mt. Lebanon, the event includes panels totaling 15 experts discussing the effects

of addiction on families, the tough policy decisions regarding addicted parents and their children, the availability of treatment, and the balance between public safety and rehabilitation.

He said all of his forum’s hourlong sessions will include time for audience questions. More than 100 people have signed up to attend, though people can attend without registering in advance.

His district includes Mt. Lebanon, Dormont, Castle Shannon, Baldwin Township and parts of Brookline and Scott, and he says those areas continue to grapple with the opioid epidemic, just like so many communities. “The biggest concern that I keep hearing from people is that nobody feels that we’re at the top of this problem yet, and there’s still more to come,” he said.