AG Sessions: Goal is to reduce opioid-related deaths, wants to see 30 percent reduction
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions spoke to a group in Raleigh on Tuesday afternoon about the Trump administration's plan to combat the nation's opioid crisis.
Posted — Updated
The U.S. Justice Department wants to join settlement talks in lawsuits against manufacturers and distributors of opioid painkillers as more than 400 cities and counties across the country are suing drug makers for costs associated with addiction. The federal government said it can lend information and expertise to local governments.
"The goal is to reduce deaths, not to allow them to continue," he said. "We would like to see a 30 percent reduction in prescribing drugs, deaths and violent crime."
Sessions announced a plan to send 12 special prosecutors to several areas, including the Northern District of North Carolina, to find "pill mills" and track down doctors who illegally prescribe narcotics.
Sessions will speak Tuesday afternoon at the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Federal Building on New Bern Avenue. The event is not open to the public.
• Credits
Copyright 2024 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
