    [United States Statutes at Large, Volume 134, 116th Congress, 2nd Session]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    Proclamation 10074 of September 11, 2020
    Prescription Opioid and Heroin Epidemic Awareness Week, 2020
    By the President of the United States of America
    A Proclamation
    During Prescription Opioid and Heroin Epidemic Awareness Week, we
    reaffirm our unwavering commitment to ending the opioid crisis in our
    country, and we pledge to help our friends, family, and colleagues with
    addiction as they work toward a drug-free life. Addiction undercuts
    human personal potential, damages families, and disrupts relationships.
    This month, and every month, we must continue to raise awareness about
    the dangers of opioid misuse and resolve to build a healthier and
    happier Nation.
    Since my first day in office, my Administration has taken aggressive
    action to confront and dismantle the driving forces behind the opioid
    crisis. In October 2017, we declared the opioid crisis a public health
    emergency, and in 2018, we secured $6 billion in new funding to fight
    the opioid crisis. Most recently, I signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief,
    and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which strengthened these efforts by
    providing millions of dollars in emergency grant funding to healthcare
    providers treating those with substance use disorders. Additionally, to
    ensure that access to addiction support services remains uninterrupted,
    I eased the regulatory burdens on the Drug Enforcement Administration
    and the Department of Health and Human Services, which are now ensuring
    greater access to treatment by expanding telehealth options.
    To fight over prescribing, a significant contributor to the widespread
    opioid addiction, my Administration launched the Safer Prescribing Plan
    in 2018, which built on our early progress and set an ambitious goal of
    cutting opioid prescription fills by one-third within 3 years. This
    initiative is a major reason why the total amount of opioid
    prescriptions filled in America has dropped by 31 percent since I took
    office. We have also developed partnerships between the Office of
    National Drug Control Policy, the Truth Initiative, and the Ad Council
    to educate young adults about the dangers of misusing opioids. These
    efforts are preventing Americans from falling victim to the potent and
    dangerous grip of opioid addiction.
    My Administration is also taking decisive action to keep dangerous drugs
    out of our country. Synthetic opioids are extremely deadly and generally
    originate outside of the United States. Our Nation's law enforcement
    officers are working night and day to keep this poison from crossing our
    borders. In 2018 alone, they seized almost 5,000 pounds of fentanyl at
    our border--enough to kill 1.2 billion individuals, the equivalent of
    every American four times over. Although we have made great progress
    through these actions, my Administration remains as committed as ever to
    using the power of Federal law and the expertise of our Nation's
    dedicated law enforcement officials to prevent the illegal importation
    and distribution of opioids, which could otherwise devastate countless
    American families.
    To help those already struggling with addiction, my Administration is
    working to champion evidence-based treatments and provide recovery

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    support resources. In 2018, I signed the Substance Use-Disorder
    Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment (SUPPORT) for
    Patients and Communities Act, which uses a whole-of-government approach
    to better monitor prescribing, improve treatment, prevent addiction, and
    curb the use of illegal drugs. We have also awarded nearly $50 million
    in planning grants to 15 States to increase the capacity of Medicaid
    providers to deliver substance use disorder treatment and recovery
    services. And beginning in January of this year, Medicare began covering
    services for its beneficiaries at opioid treatment programs. Together,
    these efforts will help expand treatment access and provide crucial
    support to those who need it.
    This Prescription Opioid and Heroin Epidemic Awareness Week, we redouble
    our efforts to defeat our Nation's opioid crisis. We can never forget
    the hundreds of thousands of lives lost, nor the families forever
    altered due to this scourge. We will always support those around us who
    are suffering from addiction, encourage those struggling in private to
    reach out for help, and celebrate those who have found a pathway from
    addiction to recovery. Together, we will continue to build awareness and
    work toward a healthier, safer society where every community, family,
    and individual can flourish.
    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 September 13 through
    September 19, 2020, as Prescription Opioid and Heroin Epidemic Awareness
    Week. I call upon my fellow Americans to observe this week with
    activities of awareness and remembrance of the lives lost and
    commitments to continue the fight.
    IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eleventh day of
    September, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the
    Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
    fifth.
    DONALD J. TRUMP