Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar stressed that the Trump administration views the opioid epidemic as a disease rather than a moral failing, and it will take that approach in its policy implementation.
“At HHS and across this administration, we know that we need to treat addiction as a medical challenge, not as a moral failing,” he said in opening remarks Thursday at the White House’s opioid summit, an event aimed to bring attention to actions the Trump administration is taking on the crisis.
Azar said the Trump administration would be starting a media campaign to educate people about the dangers of addiction but also would stress that addiction can happen to anyone. The “Rx Awareness” media campaign that has begun in some states, led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stresses that message.
“I do think the destigmatization of substance use disorder is critical,” Azar said. “We have to get people willing to seek out treatment.”
Azar pointed to the Trump administration’s promotion of drug courts, which place people with addictions who have committed crimes into substance abuse treatment rather than jail. The Trump administration has said the opioid crisis is a priority, involving addiction and more than 40,000 overdose deaths a year from drugs such as prescription painkillers, fentanyl, and heroin.
The health secretary was in the later parts of his remarks responding to a question from Kathryn Burgum, North Dakota’s first lady, who was in the audience at the summit and has been in addiction recovery for 16 years. She wanted to know if the Trump administration’s communication campaign would “promote understanding and empathy.” Without understanding, she said, people will be hesitant to seek treatment.
“I did not seek real help for almost 20 years because I was ashamed,” she said.
