April 9, 2018
Read Sandy Santana’s op-ed on the opioid crisis in USA Today:
President Trump’s proposal to solve the opioid crisis by executing drug dealers is reminiscent of the failed War on Drugs, and it’s an absurd solution to a public health crisis that ravages families, children and entire communities across the nation.
Children are entering foster care because their parents are addicted to opioids, and the epidemic is only getting worse. This crisis demands a response focused on treatment and prevention, so we can keep these families together and protect our most valuable resource: our children.
Between 2012 and 2016, the number of children in foster care increased by more than 10% — bringing the total to nearly half a million. This upsurge disrupted a decade-long downward trend.
Strikingly, in the past eight years, the number of child removals in which substance abuse is a factor has nearly quadrupled, particularly in regions with higher levels of opioid prescribing and opioid deaths.
The full article is available here.