Washington, DC, Jan. 15, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- January 15, 2019 – Today Addiction Policy Forum, a national nonprofit dedicated to a comprehensive response to addiction, launched 192aDay, an awareness campaign based on the latest Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report showing that 192 lives were lost due to drug overdose every day in 2017. 192aDay gives families and friends a platform to share stories of their loved ones lost to drug overdose and other complications of substance use. By bringing substance use disorders out of the shadows, this campaign empowers those struggling with addiction and substance use to find local resources and urges community and national leaders to support a comprehensive response for this public health crisis.
“It is devastating that each day 192 families throughout the United States lose a loved one to drug overdose,” says Jessica Hulsey Nickel, founder of Addiction Policy Forum. “192aDay helps shine a light on the lives lost to addiction while also giving their families a way to share their memories. We are losing far too many people to drug overdose and we need to do everything we can to eliminate the stigma surrounding addiction and improve access to care.”
In November, the CDC released its latest report on the impact of drug overdoses on American lives. The report showed that 70,237 people died of overdose deaths in 2017. Opioids were involved in 67.8 percent of all drug overdose deaths.
“These latest CDC numbers show that we are continuing to move in the wrong direction when it comes to addressing substance use in this country,” says Gen. Barry McCaffrey, advisory board chair for Addiction Policy Forum and former Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). “Too many families know the devastation of this epidemic and it is time that we address addiction and substance use as a country.”
For those interested in sharing their loved one’s story, or reading stories submitted by families across the country, please visit www.192aday.org.
About Addiction Policy Forum
Addiction Policy Forum is a nationwide nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating addiction as a major health problem. Our national headquarters are located in Washington, DC with resources and services in every state.
More information on our mission and projects is available at http://addictionpolicy.org.
Contact
Casey Elliott
VP, Communications and Public Relations
(312) 860-5353
celliott@addictionpolicy.org
###