This entry was posted in Recovery on by .

Throughout the past few years, news stories about the heroin epidemic have circulated, grown quiet, then ramped up in frequency and intensity. Experts are now calling this epidemic the worst drug crisis in US history. Further, the Centers for Disease Control announced that opioid overdoses kill more people than car accidents per year.  With multiple states passing emergency needle exchange programs and debates between Republicans and Democrats hitting the House and Senate, the fight against heroin overdose is at an all-time and controversial high.

Politicians are scrambling to get funding in order, though tensions surrounding the upcoming presidential election have made it even more difficult to find common ground. The most recent effort to help raise awareness and gain funding to slow this pernicious epidemic is the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA).

According to CARA’s supporters, the hope is to create an inter-agency task force to review, modify, and update the best practices for pain management and prescribing painkillers. In addition to regulating prescriptions, it will also help at-risk individuals gain greater access to services to help them break their addiction, while focusing more on the health of the individual rather than merely the criminal justice ramifications.  This bill intersects between criminal justice reform and mental health legislation, and is one of the few bills to not have any outright opposition. In an intense season of “us and them”, CARA has brought rare refreshing bi-partisan support.

CARA is currently being debated on the floor of the Senate, and, once passed, will land on President Obama’s desk for his signature of approval.  House Speaker Paul Ryan is hopeful that no matter what party places a candidate in the White House in November, both Republicans and Democrats recognize the urgency of this matter and will fight to see it passed.

Though this heroin epidemic has far reaches and grave ramifications, recovery is indeed possible. If you struggle with heroin or opioid prescriptions, call our office today at (888) 507-1355 to get more information about life altering treatment and rehabilitation.