in the interim report prepared by the commission emphasized increased access to addiction recovery treatment across the country, rather than pursuing the law enforcement approach. The proposed actions within the commission’s interim report also include an increase in treatment capacity, an elimination of legal barriers to allow all 50 states to access Medicaid funding for addiction recovery programs, a distribution of the potentially life-saving opioid overdose reversal drug naloxone, and mandated education programs for professionals who prescribe opioids.
“The bottom line here is that Sessions would be pursuing a tough drug war approach even if we didn’t have an opioid problem because that’s his modus operandi,” Collins said. “He’s taking advantage of the opioid epidemic to pursue his agenda.”
While Sessions made no mention of the interim report prepared by the commission during his speech to the Colombian Police Academy, he did reference Trump’s ongoing attempts to construct a wall along the border between Mexico and the U.S., underscoring his position that erecting the wall will reduce the flow of illicit substances into the country.
“The wall is not about controlling drugs — It’s about trying to control human beings, and it’s just fundamentally dishonest,” Collins said. “If this administration cared about treating drug use, then they wouldn’t be trying to take health care away from millions of individuals.”
“They don’t care about drug users at all,” Collins concluded.
