The U.S. Surgeon General has said that better partnerships lead to better national health. As a result, a number of agencies, organizations, and companies are re-examining how they approach combatting the opioid crisis in their local communities. Collaborative approaches that both stress the importance of prevention and engage all aspects of a community to address addiction as a disease instead of a moral failing are beginning to become more prevalent. This panel will discuss the opioid epidemic as a national public health emergency, while also highlighting how local-level collaborative action – with New Jersey as a case study– is the key to helping our communities emerge from this crisis.

Moderator

Dan Diamond Author, POLITICO Pulse

Speakers

Shereef Elnahal Commissioner, New Jersey Department of HealthThomas Graf Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New JerseyElinore McCance-Katz Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, U.S. Department of Health and Human ServicesNora Volkow Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health