In a series of events and releases this week, Governor Cooper will encourage North Carolinians to continue to work together to combat the opioid crisis and update the state on progress made since he launched the Opioid Action Plan in 2017.
The NC Department of Health and Human Services will hold the second Opioid Summit at the McKimmon Center at North Carolina State University June 11-12. The Governor will be joined by Secretary Mandy Cohen, Attorney General Josh Stein and other key partners to share ideas about local, state and national efforts, innovative policies, prevention strategies, harm reduction initiatives, and work with justice-involved people. Governor Cooper will deliver remarks on the first day of the summit.
On Wednesday, June 12, Governor Cooper will host a Medicaid Roundtable discussion. Attendees include people directly affected by the opioid crisis and how access to health care is critical to battling this disease.
Among the highlights of the discussion this week to watch for are:
• Opioid Action Plan 2.0, to be released at the Opioid Action Summit
• Updates on the progress North Carolina has made in the last two years in addressing opioid addiction in communities across our state
• Medicaid Round table discussion with those affected by the opioid epidemic, and how expansion is an essential tool in combatting this issue
Key information that will be a part of this week’s discussion include:
• Information for communities on how they can plug into Opioid Action Plan strategies, particularly around prevention
• Highlights from the data on the Opioid Dashboard – a real-time check on the progress made by the Opioid Action Plan
• Recap video message from Governor Cooper about this week’s efforts and the urgency of the issue
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