The strategy focuses on three components: prevention, enforcement and treatment.
Here are five things to know about the DOJ’s strategy to combat the prescription opioid and heroin epidemic.
1. Attorney General Loretta Lynch sent a letter to state governors calling on them to strengthen the effectiveness of prescription drug monitoring programs.
2. The department will offer an $8.8 million grant to 20 states to help them reduce prescription abuse, misuse and diversion.
3. The department will promote the use of its naloxene among state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies that do not already adhere to a naloxone program. Naloxone is a medication used to counter the effects of opioid overdose.
4. The federal Drug Enforcement Agency will direct its resources toward combating those factors contributing to the epidemic, including individuals and institutions responsible for the trafficking of heroin and fentanyl.
5. The Bureau of Prison will commit to implementing a nationwide plan to expand medication-assisted treatment to all residential reentry centers, subject to funding.
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