West Virginia is set to receive over $5 million from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to track opioid use in the state. This funding is part of the Centers for Disease Control’s Overdose Data to Action in States program, which aims to help local government health offices reduce drug overdoses and related harms. The program will assist the state health department in tracking and preventing both fatal and nonfatal overdoses, as well as identifying emerging drug threats.
Senator Joe Manchin’s office released a statement expressing pleasure at the investment by HHS. According to Manchin, this funding will be essential in collecting data to aid in preventing overdoses within West Virginia. The state has been deeply affected by the drug epidemic, and this funding will play a crucial role in combating it. In the past, similar funds have been used by the West Virginia Department of Health to enhance the state’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program.
Chris Schulz is a reporter covering the education beat in North Central and Morgantown for WVPB. Prior to this role, Chris worked as the digital media editor at The Dominion Post newspaper in Morgantown. He has experience in immigration advocacy and education in the Washington, D.C. area. Chris is a graduate of the University of Maryland and holds a Masters in Journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.