In Support of President Biden’s Unity Agenda, White House ONDCP Director Travels to Maryland to Announce New State Efforts to Address the Overdose Epidemic

Dr. Gupta and Governor Moore highlighted the critical importance of strong federal-state partnerships in delivering on President Biden’s Strategy to address the overdose epidemic and save lives

Annapolis, MD – This week, in support of President Biden’s Unity Agenda efforts to beat the overdose epidemic, White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Director Dr. Rahul Gupta traveled to Maryland to join Governor Wes Moore, Lieutenant Governor Aruna Miller, and Special Secretary of Opioid Response Emily Keller in announcing a new state Executive Order establishing Maryland’s Office of Overdose Response. Under this Executive Order, the Office of Overdose Response will coordinate with federal and local governments to strengthen overdose prevention, address substance use disorder, and protect public health and enhance public safety across the state. This latest effort from Maryland supports President Biden’s National Drug Control Strategy, which focuses on a balanced approach of strengthening both public health and public safety efforts to address the overdose epidemic and save lives.

You can watch the full event here.

“President Biden made beating the overdose epidemic a key pillar of his Unity Agenda because it’s an issue where all Americans – including leaders at every level of government – can come together and make progress for the nation,” said ONDCP Director Dr. Gupta. “Strong partnerships between state and federal government are critical in our efforts to address this crisis, and I am grateful for the leadership of Governor Moore and Lieutenant Governor Miller as they work to strengthen both public health and public safety efforts in Maryland with the new Office of Overdose Response. This issue is a top priority of the Biden-Harris Administration, and we will continue working tirelessly to ensure that states have the resources and tools they need to address the overdose epidemic and save lives.”

As part of the announcement, Dr. Gupta highlighted the critical importance of delivering on President Biden’s National Drug Control Strategy. The Biden-Harris Administration has made clear that addressing the overdose epidemic will require a whole-of-society effort. During his first State of the Union address, President Biden named beating the overdose epidemic as one of the four pillars of his Unity Agenda, focused on issues where all Americans can come together and make progress for the nation. The President has made this issue a top priority since day one of his Administration, and thanks to unprecedented funding and bipartisan efforts, the Administration has taken historic actions to address substance use, protect public health and public safety, go after drug traffickers’ profits, and save lives.

Under President Biden’s leadership, more than $322 million in federal drug control funding went to Maryland last year, and the overdose death rate decreased by eight percent across the state. 

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