If you hear members of Congress tell it, this is really the moment that federal lawmakers are taking the opioid epidemic seriously. “Many of these policies seem to be tinkering around the edges,” Dr. Leana Wen, the health commissioner of Baltimore, told me. 

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Fresh on the heels of President Donald Trump's plan to tackle the opioid crisis, House lawmakers this week plan to introduce more than two dozen bills aimed at ending the epidemic, ranging from better access to treatment programs to exploring opioid alternatives for pain. "I would argue that we on the front lines already know what is working," said Dr. Leana Wen, Baltimore City Health Commissioner.

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In her op-ed, Dr. Wen expresses her concern's with President Trump's opioid plan.

"Yesterday, President Trump announced his plan to curb the opioid epidemic. While it is laudable that he is devoting time and attention to this issue, much of his announcement is deeply troubling."

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President Trump delivered a fiery speech yesterday calling for the execution of some drug traffickers. But to actually start doing that, he’d either need Congress to change the law or would have to reinterpret it on his own. Baltimore City Health Commissioner Leana Wen said she’s worried about Trump’s focus on punishment.

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President Donald Trump on Monday rolled out his three-part plan to tackle the opioid epidemic -- including some programs long championed by public health advocates -- but it's the proposal to impose the death penalty on drug traffickers that has raised the most eyebrows.

Dr. Leana Wen, Baltimore City Health Commissioner, said "The war on drugs has not worked," she said. "The last thing we need is to further criminalize the disease of addiction. We need for everyone to understand addiction is a disease, that treatment exists and recovery is possible."

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President Donald Trump on Monday said he believes the impact of the opioid abuse epidemic can be curbed by cutting opioid prescriptions by a third over the next three years. He also called for the death penalty for large-scale drug traffickers.

"The War on Drugs approach has not worked and has disproportionately incarcerated minorities and the poor," Dr. Leana Wen, Baltimore city health commissioner, said in a written statement.

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The nation’s opioid epidemic has been called today’s version of the 1980s AIDS crisis. 

Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician by training and the health commissioner for hard-hit Baltimore, said Capitol Hill has to help communities at risk of becoming overwhelmed. “We haven’t seen the peak of the epidemic. We are seeing the numbers climb year after year,” she said.

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On Monday morning, Baltimore City Health Commissioner Leana Wen passed out groceries to mark the opening of the 14th location of Virtual Supermarket at the Ruscombe Gardens, a low-income senior housing facility in the Cylburn neighborhood of northwest Baltimore.

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On Monday morning, Baltimore City Health Commissioner Leana Wen passed out groceries to mark the opening of the 14th location of Virtual Supermarket at the Ruscombe Gardens, a low-income senior housing facility in the Cylburn neighborhood of northwest Baltimore.

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"I can talk to them about the importance of eating healthy fruit and vegetables, but then they might tell me that they might have to walk several blocks or take many buses and then walk blocks in order to access healthy fruits and vegetables," said Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen.

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