Senator Miller, Health Advocates Testify in Favor of “Start Talking Maryland”

Annapolis, MD – Building off work and advice from public health experts in Southern Maryland and around the state, today Senator Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr. testified on Senate Bill 1060 – Heroin and Opioid Education and Community Action Act of 2017 better known as “Start Talking Maryland”. With Maryland’s opioid deaths reaching epidemic proportions, this legislation – together with legislation introduced by Democrats and Republicans – will address the crisis in a substantial and holistic approach.

In his testimony, Senator Miller explained that attacking the opioid epidemic must be a substantive three-pronged approach: Education & Prevention; Treatment & Rehabilitation, and Recovery & Maintenance. While Senator Miller is also supporting The Heroin and Opioid Prevention Effort (HOPE) and Treatment Act of 2017, Senate Bill 1060 focuses on the importance of Education and Prevention and community action. The bill requires specific education programs in schools on opioid addiction and provides grants for the hiring of Community Action Officials to coordinate with local schools, health departments, and law enforcement to engage communities and involve parents in fighting this epidemic.  The bill also provides funding to expand the demonstrated success of drug treatment court for citizens throughout Maryland.

“There is not one person in this state who has not been affected by the tragedy of drug addiction in some way,” said Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr. “We know that opioids and opioid addictions kill and they are in every county, every city, every community, and every school.  We need to have the tough conversations with our kids and our communities and “Start Talking Maryland” will help to make that happen by providing our schools and counties with better resources and tools to battle this epidemic.”

Joining Senator Miller on testifying in favor of this legislation were a variety of public health experts and advocates, including Dr. Larry Polsky, the Calvert County Health Officer, and representatives from the Baltimore City Health Office, MedChi, the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, and the Mental Health Association of Maryland.