WATERBURY – During a meeting with Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary, representatives from the Waterbury Police Department, and members of the Regional Opioid Workgroup, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) today called for $240 million in new emergency federal funding to aid local law enforcement in combatting the opioid and heroin epidemic in Connecticut and across the nation.
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Murphy urged Congress to immediately appropriate $230 million for the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program to help local law enforcement – including community task forces in Connecticut, such as Waterbury’s Regional Opioid Workgroup – improve coordination between criminal justice and substance abuse agencies, and implement other initiatives to combat the opioid crisis. In light of the arrests of more than forty suspected drug dealers in Waterbury earlier this week, Murphy also requested $10 million in DOJ Office of Community Oriented Policing Services Anti-Heroin Task Force grants to help local law enforcement investigate, locate, and stop the illegal distribution of heroin and prescription opioids.
“I’ve listened to recovering patients, health experts, and law enforcement personnel, and it’s clear we have a serious crisis on our hands. Congress needs to take action now – not in a few months or years, but right now – so that we can offer relief to the thousands of communities that are struggling to deal with this epidemic. Whether it’s expanding treatment and prevention programs or beefing up law enforcement, it’s time to recognize that this epidemic cannot be solved without more resources,” said Murphy.
Deaths caused by drug overdoses have skyrocketed in Connecticut. In 2015, more than 720 Connecticut residents died from drug overdoses, including 415 heroin-related deaths.
In an effort to combat the United States’ growing opioid addiction epidemic, Murphy has called on Congress to pass his bipartisan Mental Health Reform Act, which will expand federal resources and improve coordination for mental health and substance abuse treatment programs. Murphy is also a cosponsor of the TREAT Act to expand access to medication-assisted treatment, and has urged the Department of Health and Human Services to ensure that those seeking treatment for addiction have greater access to medication-assisted treatment. Most recently, Murphy spent a “Day in the Life” meeting with patients, health professionals, law enforcement, and advocates around Connecticut to learn firsthand how he can improve federal efforts to combat Connecticut’s addiction crisis and save lives.