McKean County District Attorney Stephanie Vettenburg-Shaffer is calling Gov. Tom Wolf’s statewide disaster declaration that targets heroin and opioid addiction an extraordinary move that should be praised.
Wolf signed the declaration on Wednesday, the first move of its kind for Pennsylvania.
“By reading the proclamation, it is clear his goal is to increase the state’s response in monitoring –– and more important, making changes that benefit outcomes –– to increase access to treatment and save lives,” she told The Era.
The keys to saving lives are prevention and treatment, Vettenburg-Shaffer said.
And with Wolf making the declaration, Vettenburg-Shaffer said red tape is lessened that would otherwise disrupt treatment and access to the life-saving drug naloxone.
Angie Eckstrom, executive director of Alcohol & Drug Abuse Services Inc., couldn’t agree more, saying that she thinks any measures that “ease up” regulations that stand in the way of effective treatment and intervention is always a good thing.
Bradford City Police Chief Chris Lucco added, “Although we have seen a reduction in overdoses the last year or so I am well aware that this epidemic is still a very real problem in many places. Although I am not familiar with the specific benefits that the declaration will bring I am certain that the decision was made in an effort to help our communities fight this battle with additional resources.”
To Lucco, the most effective method of fighting the epidemic is through education of citizens and medical providers and better monitoring of prescription drugs.
“This is certainly not a quick resolution, but as I have said in the past we are not going to arrest our way out of this epidemic,” he said. “It was not created overnight. It was fostered for years and it is going to take time to get control over it.”
In 2016, more than 4,600 Pennsylvanians lost their lives to the opioid epidemic, followed by more than 5,000 last year, according to the Pennsylvania Medical Society.
“There’s no question the opioid epidemic is decimating families and communities across the state,” said Martin Causer, R-Turtlepoint. “The General Assembly has passed nearly a dozen laws over the last three years to curb over-prescribing of opioid drugs and improve treatment options in an attempt to combat the problem, but there’s no question more needs to be done.”
Meanwhile, state lawmakers have their own ideas to propose tackling the epidemic.
“The governor has outlined some positive steps the administration can take to help address the opioid problem, but there is still more to do and we, in the Legislature, have many ideas of our own that we are excited to share and move through our committees this year,” said state Rep. Matt Baker, R-Wellsboro, chairman of the House Health Committee, and state Rep. Gene DiGirolamo, R-Bensalem, chairman of the House Human Services Committee.
Federal lawmakers also chimed in on Wolf’s declaration.
“This declaration will bring additional resources to bear on this horrific public health emergency that has ripped apart far too many families,” U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., said. “Now, the federal government must do its part so that states don’t have to deal with this alone.”
He said that the announcement comes on the heels of Casey’s 2017 introduction of the Combating the Opioid Epidemic Act. The legislation would invest $45 billion for prevention, detection, surveillance and treatment of opioids.
“The opioid and heroin crisis has rightfully drawn bipartisan attention in Congress and all levels of government, with President Trump having already taken the extraordinary step of declaring a nationwide public health emergency,” U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa, said.
