THE BILL ITSELF
HR 8093
Nonopioid Alternatives Awareness Month
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House Resolution
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A resolution recognizing May 2026 as "Nonopioid
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Alternatives Awareness Month" in Florida.
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WHEREAS, on June 25, 2024, the United States Secretary of
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Health and Human Services, Xavier Becerra, renewed the
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nationwide Opioid Public Health Emergency Declaration, and
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WHEREAS, in response to the opioid crisis facing Florida,
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the Legislature has adopted a broad, multipronged strategy that
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involves law enforcement, public health, treatment access, and
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community recovery efforts, and
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WHEREAS, the opioid overdose epidemic is a complex problem,
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since opioids as a class of drugs include not only illegal drugs
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such as heroin, but also legal drugs prescribed for pain
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management, and
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WHEREAS, according to the Centers for Disease Control and
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Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics, more than
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107,000 lives were lost from drug-involved overdoses in 2022,
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with over 75 percent of drug overdose deaths involving opioids
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and nearly 308,000 overdose deaths from 1999 to 2022 involving
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prescription opioids, and
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WHEREAS, the rate of drug overdose deaths among African
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Americans has continued to rise, from 44.2 deaths per 100,000
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people in 2021 to 47.5 in 2022, and
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WHEREAS, in 2022, the Centers for Disease Control and
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Prevention issued an updated guidance emphasizing the
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effectiveness of nonopioid therapies for many common types of
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pain and recommending that clinicians maximize the use of such
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therapies, which do not carry the same risks as opioids, NOW,
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THEREFORE,
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Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of
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Florida:
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That May 2026 is designated as "Nonopioid Alternatives
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Awareness Month" in Florida to increase awareness of the danger
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associated with opioids and the effectiveness of nonopioid
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therapies as an alternative for pain management.