The City of Chicago recently announced plans to direct millions from settlements with opioid manufacturers and distributors to fight the opioid epidemic. While better access to overdose treatments and medication-assistance recovery resources is important, it’s much of the same: a downstream approach to combat a crisis that continues to take the lives of our neighbors and family members at an unacceptable rate.
Meanwhile, a federal policy to prevent needless opioid exposure is held up until 2025, putting tens of millions of patients at risk of developing an opioid use disorder over the next two years.
