President Donald Trump made a mockery of the nation’s deadly opioid epidemic Monday in New Hampshire when he turned what was supposed to be a policy announcement about new steps to ease addictions into a political rally, complete with chants and gratuitous insults to Democrats.
The opioid crisis, which kills more than one Mainer and 115 Americans a day, needs a serious, consistent and evidence-based response. Trump has again proven he is unable to deliver that.
To be sure, Trump made some promising pledges, such as increasing spending to combat the problem by $6 billion. Some of that money will go toward developing nonaddictive painkillers, which already exist but can’t compete with the huge marketing pushes from opioid drug makers.
The president also promised a federal plan to cut opioid prescriptions by a third over the next three years. He gave no details about how this important work will be done.
He also called for greater availability of the overdose-reversing drug naloxone, which also goes by the brand name Narcan. This is counter to the thinking of Gov. Paul LePage, who has vigorously fought efforts to make Narcan more easily obtainable in Maine. Even though this is an important step, there is reason for skepticism as the price of some versions of the drug have risen sharply as demand has increased, benefitting drug companies and their investors.
Most important, Trump touted the importance of evidence- and science-based treatment, especially medication-assisted treatment, which research has shown to be the most effective approach to easing substance abuse disorder. But, again, the president gave no details.
And, as so often the case with Trump, what he says on Monday could be totally reversed by what he tweets on Wednesday. He also peppered his speech with threats to sanctuary cities and criticism of Democrats for inaction on legislation for young immigrants, which have nothing to do with opioid misuse.
Despite the positives, the centerpiece of Trump’s announcement was to re-emphasize a “get tough” approach, the centerpiece of which is his call to execute drug dealers. “The ultimate penalty has to be the death penalty,” Trump said to cheers from the hand-picked audience.
“I think unless you do that, unless you have really, really powerful penalties, led by the death penalty for the really bad pushers and abusers, we are going to get nowhere,” he added.
Although he refused to name them, Trump touted countries that he said have no drug problem because they execute drug dealers. These countries include Iraq, Saudi Arabia, China and South Sudan, all of which are known for their barbaric policies toward criminals and so-called dissidents. This is not the model for the U.S. to follow.
Plus, it doesn’t work. And it may not be constitutional.
Tina Nadeau, executive director of the Maine Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, called the president’s proposal “deeply troubling.”
“Our clients need expanded and free access to treatment, both psychological and medical, and community-based support services, not incarceration and certainly not the death penalty,” she said.
About a quarter of patients who are prescribed opioids for chronic pain misuse them and 80 percent of heroin users first misused prescription opioid medication. Trump did not say if his death penalty plan included drug company executives and others who promoted the widespread use of prescription opioids.
Likewise, Trump’s continued emphasis on “great commercials” that will scare kids away from using drugs is ludicrous. Studies have shown that “just say no” approaches don’t work.
As Trump noted in his speech in Manchester, a panel he convened issued numerous common-sense recommendations. He should follow them instead of touting campaign-style talking points that appeal to his supporters but do little to solve the very real problem of opioid addiction.
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