    [United States Statutes at Large, Volume 132, 115th Congress, 2nd Session]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    Proclamation 9795 of September 28, 2018

    National Substance Abuse Prevention Month, 2018

    By the President of the United States of America

    A Proclamation

    During National Substance Abuse Prevention Month, we recognize the
    importance of ending and preventing substance abuse. We must remain
    vigilant in raising awareness about the harms posed by alcohol and
    drugs, including prescription opioids, and their high potential for
    addiction. We can--and we must--provide families with the information,
    skills, and resources to stay safe and strong. As a Nation, we renew our
    commitment to improving individual and community health through
    increased education on the risks of substance abuse. Our investment in
    prevention will help to further yield improved academic performance,
    healthier lifestyles, more successful citizens, and safer communities.
    Our country is reeling from the enormity of an opioid epidemic that has
    resulted in huge numbers of overdose fatalities, an influx of children
    in foster care, and too many families forever changed by the addiction
    or death of a loved one. In 2017 alone, it is estimated that we lost
    approximately 72,000 Americans to an overdose, and approximately 49,000
    of those deaths involved an opioid. Fueled by prescription pain
    medications, heroin, and illicit fentanyl, the severity of the current
    addiction crisis requires immediate action. We must go beyond simply
    raising awareness about the harms and risks of illicit drugs, which is
    one reason why, last October, my Administration declared a nationwide
    Public Health Emergency to continue comprehensively and proactively
    fighting the opioid epidemic on every front.
    My Administration is committed to helping overcome addiction in our
    country. This past June, we launched a public awareness campaign
    directed toward our Nation's vulnerable young people, helping them
    ``know the truth''; and ``spread the truth''; about the risks of opioid
    abuse. In August, we awarded a record-breaking $90.9 million to 731
    Drug-Free Communities coalitions across all 50 States to help prevent
    youth drug abuse. We are also encouraging adult individuals and family
    members to share their personal stories on how this epidemic has
    affected them through platforms such as The Crisis Next Door. Launched
    by the White House earlier this year, this initiative is helping to
    remove harmful stigmas surrounding opioid abuse and showing that this
    crisis can affect anyone from anywhere.
    This month, we reaffirm our commitment to helping educate our loved ones
    on the devastating effects substance abuse can have on our families, our
    communities, and our Nation. I call on parents, educators, mentors,
    employers, healthcare professionals, law enforcement officials, faith
    and community leaders, and Americans to support evi

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    dence-based prevention programs. Through our united advocacy and
    awareness efforts on the horrific dangers of substance abuse, we can
    cultivate a society focused on health, wellness, and prosperity.
    NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of
    America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
    the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 2018 as
    National Substance Abuse Prevention Month. I call upon all Americans to
    engage in appropriate programs and activities to promote comprehensive
    substance abuse prevention efforts within their communities.
    IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-eighth day
    of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the
    Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
    third.
    DONALD J. TRUMP