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together, we can build healthy, safe and resilient communities where we have reduced the adverse experiences that can lead to substance use disorder, where public health services are available to everyone who needs them, and where the millions of Americans living in recovery have their health, their home, their community, and their purpose in life. As President Biden said in his State of the Union, “If you’re suffering from addiction, you should know you’re not alone. I believe in recovery, and I celebrate the 23 million Americans in recovery… Now is our moment to meet and overcome the challenges of our time together. And we will.” Our work cannot wait because every five minutes is a chance to save and transform a life. Dr. Rahul Gupta Director of National Drug Control Policy « « « « « « 8 NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL STRATEGY Introduction: Saving Lives is Our North Star The drug overdose epidemic has taken a heartbreaking toll on Americans and their families. Provisionally, in the 12-months ending October 2021, an historic 105,752 persons are predicted to have died from a drug overdose; a 71-percent increase over this time period in 2016.1 This was a greater rate of increase than for any other type of injury-related death in the United States.2 Synthetic opioids, including illicit fentanyl, has been involved in 66-percent of these overdose deaths. Saving lives is our North Star, and the 2022 National Drug Control Strategy calls for immediate actions that will save lives in the short term and outlines long-term solutions to reduce drug use and its associated harms, including overdose. The Biden-Harris Administration’s Drug Policy Priorities for Year One The passage and signature of the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities (SUPPORT) Act in 2018 required the Office of National Drug Control Policy to produce a statement of drug policy priorities by April 1 of the first year of an Administration and an inaugural National Drug Control Strategy in the second year. President Biden understood the urgency of the issue when he took office and the Biden-Harris Administration submitted its first-year drug policy priorities to Congress on April 1, 2021. These seven priorities proposed specific and targeted actions to reduce overdoses and promote recovery, including expanding access to quality treatment, reducing an increasingly lethal supply of illicit substances, and enhancing harm reduction services that engage and build trust with people who use drugs, among others. The seven Biden-Harris Administration drug policy priorities for the first year were: 1. Expanding access to evidence-based treatment, particularly medication for opioid use disorder. 2. Advancing racial equity in our approach to drug policy. 3. Enhancing evidence-based harm reduction efforts. 4. Supporting evidence-based prevention efforts to reduce youth substance use. 5. Reducing the supply of illicit substances. 6. Advancing recovery-ready workplaces and expanding the addiction workforce. 7. Expanding access to recovery support services. ONDCP worked closely with agencies, Congress, and other partners in support of these priorities. « « « « « « NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL STRATEGY 9 Significant Actions Taken to Save Lives The Biden-Harris Administration has taken several actions that support the first-year drug policy priorities: • President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan into law, which invested nearly $4 billion in expanding access to vital mental health and substance use disorder services. • The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a new Overdose Prevention Strategy that supports substance use prevention by expanding research of new and improved prevention efforts, investing in community resources to help prevent harms related to substance use, increasing access to high-quality pain management to reduce preventable suffering, and promoting responsible prescription of medications to protect patient safety. • The Administration made it easier for health care providers to prescribe buprenorphine to treat more patients with opioid use disorder; Thousands of providers signed up to do this within a few months. • The Administration also announced rulemaking intentions to extend pandemic related treatment flexibilities to allow: • people with opioid use disorder to begin buprenorphine treatment by telehealth, including through phone consultation; and • patients receiving methadone to receive a higher amount of take-home e medication instead of visiting a clinic every day. • The DEA revised regulations to allow treatment providers to operate mobile methadone vans, bringing treatment to rural, incarcerated, and underserved communities. • President Biden announced two Executive Orders to counter transnational criminal organizations and illicit drug trafficking, first by formally establishing the U.S. Council on Transnational Organized Crime, and second, by modernizing and expanding the U.S. Government’s ability to target drug trafficking organizations, their enablers, and financial facilitators through sanctions and other related actions. These key actions represent a fraction of the total. For a comprehensive list, visit White House Releases List of Actions Taken by the Biden-Harris Administration Since January 2021 to Address Addiction 

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