Test Drive Our New Site! We have some improvements in the works that we're excited for you to experience. Click here to try our new, faster, mobile friendly beta site. We will be maintaining our current version of the site thru the end of 2024, so you can switch back as our improvements continue.
Legislation Quick Search
Advanced Search
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
04/19/2024 04:36 PM
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=H&SPick=20150&cosponId=19980
Share:
Home / House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda

House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda

Subscribe to PaLegis Notifications
NEW!

Subscribe to receive notifications of new Co-Sponsorship Memos circulated

By Member | By Date | Keyword Search


House of Representatives
Session of 2015 - 2016 Regular Session

MEMORANDUM

Posted: April 5, 2016 11:14 AM
From: Representative Brandon P. Neuman
To: All House members
Subject: Resolution - Create a Subcommittee on Drug Abuse within the Health Committee
 

I plan to introduce a Resolution amending our House Rules to create a Subcommittee on Drug Abuse within the Health Committee. This subcommittee will have the dual mission of furthering efforts to improve substance abuse treatment practices along with a special emphasis on substance abuse prevention. There is a growing opioid epidemic in the state and we need the highly focused attention of a new subcommittee to help combat this crisis and the devastating impact it is having on our communities. The Commonwealth currently ranks 4th in number of drug overdose deaths among teenagers and young adults. Among other things, the subcommittee will:
  • Take steps to ensure that the efforts of the many state agencies, from the Department of Health to Law Enforcement, are addressing this crisis in a coordinated manner and using consistent practices and messages regarding abuse treatment and prevention.
  • Ensure that our Prescription Drug Monitoring Program is fully operational and that we are properly coordinating our monitoring efforts with neighboring states.
  • Help develop strategies for working with our schools to educate them about the dangers of drug abuse. Early education and early intervention is a prevention key. The earlier a person begins to experiment with alcohol and drugs the greater the probability that the person will go down the wrong road.
  • Develop steps to educate the medical and pharmaceutical professions about the dangers of overprescribing and over dispensing opioids. Opioid prescriptions in the U. S. now annually exceed 250 million, more than one for every adult in the country. Prescription opioid drug abuse kills more people than all other narcotics combined.
  • Review the effectiveness of our addiction treatment programs and, working with Drug and Alcohol Abuse counseling professionals, make recommendations for better treatment and prevention programs, where necessary.
This issue affects us all. Across this state, regardless of race, ethnicity, geography and income, we have all seen the devastation this epidemic can cause. This subcommittee is needed, so we can dedicate the appropriate legislative efforts to help our communities. Please join me in co-sponsoring this Resolution to create the Subcommittee on Drug Abuse so we can better focus on strategies to protect public health and safety and combat this crisis.


Introduced as HR814