COLUMBUS – In Columbus Wednesday, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions unveiled a new plan to address the nation’s drug abuse epidemic.
In a speech at the Columbus Division of Police training academy on the West Side, Sessions announced his plan to send 12 federal prosecutors to cities ravaged by opioid addiction, they will take aim at some not-so-usual suspects, focusing exclusively on investigating health care fraud and opioid scams that are fueling the opioid crisis.
“Prosecutors, working with the FBI, [Drug Enforcement Administration, Department of Health and Human Services], as well as our state and local partners, will help us target and prosecute these doctors, pharmacists, medical providers and others who are furthering this epidemic while lining their pockets,” Sessions said.
Democrats are criticizing the plan, saying evidence shows more treatment and public health options are needed.
Democratic National Committee spokeswoman Mandy McClure also says budget proposals by President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans would make the epidemic worse by proposed cuts in Medicaid spending.
Sessions said that treatment alone is not enough.
The Franklin County Coroner’s Office released a report in June indicating that drug overdose deaths were 66 percent higher in the first four months of 2017 than the year before, primarily due to an increase deaths related to the use of the synthetic opiate fentanyl, which is much more powerful than heroin or morphine.