B

W: Good evening, everybody. Now let’s turn to the opioid crisis in this country and the federal government’s response. Since President Trump was elected, he called on a White House panel to recommend what more need to be done. The commission, chaired by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, is expected to issue a final report this fall. But, in the meantime, the commission released its initial recommendations yesterday, saying it was time to declare a national health emergency. Today, we invite North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, a member of the commission to join me now.
    M: Thank you, hostess.
    W: Every year, drug overdoses kill more people than gun homicides and car crashes combined; 142 Americans die from opioids every day. And since 1999, the number of opioid overdoses in the U.S. has quadrupled.
    M: Yes. That is why the commission suggests not only to declare a national emergency, but increase treatment under Medicaid, educate doctors on how to better prescribe opioids, and increase use of medication that helps people overcome addiction.
    W: There are already about three dozen declared national emergencies. Why would President Trump declare another national emergency help?
    M: Well, that 142 people a day are dying in the United States is completely unacceptable, and this is a fixable problem if we work together in a bipartisan way. It could free up federal funds. It could also allow states to have the flexibility to provide more treatment. And we’re working together to make sure we address this problem, and it’s something we need to do right now.
    W: The report singles out Medicaid especially as the best way to increase treatment. As you know, the president, to whom this report is directed, has endorsed repeals of the Affordable Care Act that would actually reduce Medicaid reach. How do you square that circle?
    M: Yes, this is one of the problems with the commission right now. The report is incomplete. We’re whistling past the graveyard if we don’t recognize that, in order to provide treatment, that we have to increase Medicaid funding to the states, and we have to make sure that every American has good, quality health insurance that covers substance abuse and addiction treatment.
    W: The report goes deep into how important it is to get to medication that helps overcome addiction. But there is some stigma over that. There is a stigma of treating drugs with more drugs. How do you overcome that stigma?
    M: I think it’s clear that data shows that medication-assisted treatment can be effective to help people with opioid addiction, and I’m glad the report gets into this and makes recommendations on it. In fact, I think that it needs to be expanded. The data is pretty clear. It’s also clear that individuals react differently to different medications. So, you have to have providers who are trained in medication-assisted treatment.
    W: But I think it’s a positive thing. This is a crisis. We have got opioid addiction that’s killing people. If medication-assisted treatment is helpful to them, then we want to make sure that it’s available to them. The report talks about the importance of educating doctors on how to prescribe medication that helps overcome addiction. But there have been reeducation efforts on that for the last year. Why would these recommendations succeed perhaps when others haven’t?
    M: Well, I think it puts an emphasis on it across the board, that every single medical provider needs to be taught about the problems of addiction.
    W: Governor, thank you very much. We appreciate it. This is the end of the first interview.
    1. What is the commission’s initial recommendation on fighting the opioid crisis?
    2. According to this interview, since 1999, what is the change in the number of opioid overdoses in the U.S.?
    3. Why would President Trump declare another national emergency help for this issue?
    4. What is the President’s attitude toward the Affordable Care Act?
    5. What is the key to the success of reeducating doctors on how to prescribe medication?