WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is proposing to invest $1.5 billion to address the prescription opioid abuse and heroin use epidemic.
The Obama administration said the funding would ensure that everyone wanting to get treatment can access it. The funding will also expand the medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder and improve access to substance use treatment providers.
Obama’s proposal includes $1 billion in new mandatory funding over two years to expand access to treatment for prescription drug abuse and heroin use. This funding is aimed at helping individuals with an opioid use disorder seek treatment, successfully complete treatment and sustain recovery.
The majority of the funding would go to states based on the severity of the epidemic to expand access to medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorders.
About $500 million would go to the Department of Justice and Health and Human Services to expand state-level prescription drug overdose prevention strategies, increase the availability of medication-assisted treatment programs, improve access to naloxone and support targeted enforcement activities.