Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Sympathetic Tone Of Trump's Opioid Panel Contrasts With 'Ruthless' Pledge From Attorney General
As the Trump administration begins to shape its policy on drugs, tension is growing between a treatment-focused approach, embodied in a new commission on opioids headed by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and the aggressive prosecution of drug crimes promised by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. President Donald Trump signaled support for a less-punitive strategy toward opioids by assigning the task force to Mr. Christie, who has made drug rehabilitation a centerpiece of his governorship. ... That sympathetic tone contrasted with Mr. Trump鈥檚 vow last month to a police group to be 鈥渞uthless鈥欌 in stopping the drug trade and Mr. Sessions鈥 pledge to 鈥渉ammer鈥 drug dealers. (Reinhard, 3/31)
Experts keeping their eyes on ways to curb the number of overdoses in the U.S. say there's one very important person missing in President Donald Trump's commission鈥攖he nominee for top federal regulator of prescription drugs. ... Trump on Wednesday introduced a high-profile group that is tasked with reporting on ideas and progress towards curbing the nation's opioid epidemic. It includes New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie鈥攚ho has led several statewide efforts to address heroin addiction鈥擴.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Defense Secretary James Mattis and HHS Secretary Tom Price. (Johnson, 3/30)
President Trump has appointed Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to a commission to help fight opioid abuse on a national level. While she won鈥檛 be leading the panel, Bondi will be a member of the President鈥檚 Opioid and Drug Abuse Commission. (Cordner, 3/29)
Meanwhile, the epidemic continues to pay off for businesses聽鈥
Funding for the treatment of the U.S. opioid addiction epidemic would have been a top casualty of Republican鈥檚 failed Obamacare replacement plan: Mental health advocates warned of it. So did Democrats, and some of the Republicans who eventually helped kill their party鈥檚 repeal-and-replace bill. Private equity didn鈥檛 believe a word of it. After years of investment in substance abuse treatment under the Affordable Care Act, equity firms...watched Republican efforts to dismantle Obamacare with little worry that it would curtail what had become a mental health gold rush in the years since the health law passed. (Newkirk, 3/30)
