To: Eric Hargan, acting secretary of Health and Human Services and President Donald Trump

We need a real solution for the heroin, fentanyl, oxycontin, and opioid epidemic

The opioid crisis must be declared a national health emergency and significant new funds for a long-term, comprehensive strategy for both prevention and treatment must be granted. Communities need to be able to mobilize resources to fight this epidemic over the long haul.

Why is this important?

The opioid epidemic is hurting real people: every 10 minutes, a mother, child, friend, neighbor, or fellow American dies from a drug overdose.

Yesterday, Donald Trump declared the opioid crisis a national emergency—more than two months after he first committed to the declaration, and potentially more than 10,000 overdoses later.

But without significant new funds for a long-term, comprehensive strategy for both prevention and treatment, a national emergency alone is not likely to be successful.