Gov. Tom Wolf signed the 12th renewal of his January 2018 opioid disaster declaration to help the state fight the then-burgeoning opioid and heroin epidemic. The declaration allows the state to loosen regulations and work outside of typical procedures to expedite aid and initiatives to help those suffering from opioid use disorder and those who work to prevent and treat this medical condition.
“We must continue to fight both the COVID-19 pandemic and the opioid epidemic in our commonwealth, and I am grateful to the dedicated team of the Opioid Command Center for its commitment to fighting the opioid epidemic even among challenging circumstances,” Wolf said. “The work that is enabled by this declaration is vital to saving the lives of so many Pennsylvanians, providing education and treatment, and advancing initiatives across the state to continue to battle this epidemic. This work is no less important during COVID; we can and are fighting both the pandemic and the epidemic.”
The declaration allows for the redirection and reorganization of commonwealth resources to align programs from multiple agencies to work together to mitigate the opioid crisis, its causes and effects.
“The opioid crisis continues to affect our loved ones, our communities and our state for those with the disease of addiction,” said Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine. “Renewing the disaster declaration allows us to continue our efforts to ensure that we are helping those in need. Recovery works, and treatment is possible for those with this disease.”
Visit pa.gov/opioids for more information.
