The NPR Politics Podcast

America's Other Public Health Crisis: 100,000 Overdose Deaths

Nov 23, 2021

Brian Mann, NPR correspondent focused on addiction, sheds light on the staggering toll of the overdose crisis, with over 100,000 deaths reported in a year. He discusses the alarming role of synthetic opioids, particularly fentanyl, and how COVID-19 has shifted addiction patterns. The conversation also highlights the complexities of public policy, contrasting current harm reduction efforts with past drug responses. Mann offers insights into innovative solutions like clean needle exchanges, facing political hurdles yet providing a measure of hope for recovery and treatment advancements.

13:24

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Episode guests

Brian Mann

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Episode notes

Intro

3min

The Evolving Crisis of Synthetic Fentanyl and its Impact on Communities

4min

Navigating Public Policy in the Face of an Overdose Crisis

4min

Navigating Policy Solutions in the Opioid Crisis

3min

More than 100,000 people died from a drug overdose in the 12-month period beginning April 2020. Despite a growing consensus that recognizes addiction as a public health problem, many effective interventions like safe consumption sites and needle exchanges are politically unpopular and legally complex.

This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, senior political editor and correspondent Domenico Montanaro, and addiction correspondent Brian Mann.

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