Discussion: Presidential Agendas Essay

Prepare: • Review the Resources and reflect on the importance of agenda setting. • Consider how federal agendas promote healthcare issues and how these healthcare issues become agenda priorities. • Post your response to the discussion question: Consider a topic that rises to the presidential level. How did each of the presidents (Trump, Obama, and Bush) handle the problem? What would you do differently? Discussion: Presidential Agendas Essay

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Discussion: Presidential Agendas

A topic that arises at the presidential level is the opioid epidemic. It is a concern because opioids are a reliable pharmaceutical for relieving pain and are prescribed in greater numbers, yet they present a high potential for widespread misuses since they are addictive. Besides that, opioids are available as both prescription and non-prescription medication. In addition, a significant number of Americans die from opioid related drug overdoses (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2020). The Trump administration has handled the issue of opioid epidemic by declaring it as a public health emergency and championing the Initiative to Stop Opioid Abuse to confront the forces driving the epidemic. The initiative focuses on reducing the demand for opioids and over-prescription, reducing supply of illegal drugs, and treatment services for persons struggling with addiction (The White House, 2020). The Obama administration enacted expansive laws to fight the opioid epidemic. The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 (CARA) offered a comprehensive framework for preventing opioid abuse and addiction, and supporting treatment efforts. In addition, the legislation highlights the role of pharmacists to curb the epidemic. However, the legislation lacked funding, and this limited its gains (Balick, 2016). The Bush administration focused on funding drug treatment and research activities with the objective of saving lives. The strategy helps to reduce demand and provide opioid addicts with compassionate and effective treatment. Also, it countered illegal drugs supply to America through a counter-drug initiative conducted in South American countries that produce illegal drugs, such as Venezuela, Peru, Panama, Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil and Bolivia. Besides that, it strengthened the border to halt the entry of illegal drugs into the country (US Department of State, 2002). Having reviewed the actions undertaken by the three presidents, I would adopt a multimodal approach that engages all stakeholders in controlling access to opioids, providing treatment, and holding stakeholders accountable for their contributions to the epidemic. For instance, holding medical personnel accountable for failure to monitor opioid prescriptions use among patients and identifying cases of opioid abuse.  Discussion: Presidential Agendas Essay

References

Balick, R. (2016). With Obama’s signature, expansive opioid policies become law. https://www.pharmacist.com/article/obamas-signature-expansive-opioid-policies-become-law

The White House (2020). Ending America’s Opioid Crisis. https://www.whitehouse.gov/opioids/

US Department of Health and Human Services (2020). About the Epidemic. https://www.hhs.gov/opioids/about-the-epidemic/index.html

US Department of State (2002). President Bush Announces Drug Control Strategy. https://2001-2009.state.gov/p/inl/rls/rm/8451.htm

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Discussion: Presidential Agendas Essay