Members of the Wyoming Joint Opioid Addiction Task Force had their first meeting this week, and it was held in Riverton.
The reason for the task force is to discuss and enact solutions to Wyoming’s issue of prescription opioid abuse.
Members of the task force include Riverton-based Senator Eli Bebout, Senator Fred Baldwin from Kemmerer, Representative Scott Clem of Gillette, Representative Albert Sommers of Pinedale, and several health care and law enforcement officials around the state.
The task force plans to submit a preliminary summary to the Joint Labor, Health and Social Services Interim Committee, the Joint Appropriations Committee, and Management Council, as well as Governor Matt Mead before October.
According to data from DrugAbuse.com, roughly one quarter of those prescribed opioids misuse them. Opioid overdoses have increased 30% from July 2016.