Obama to Call for More Than $1B to Fight Opioid Epidemic

In his fiscal year 2017 budget, President Barack Obama says he will seek more than $1 billion in mandatory funding over two years to help combat prescription opioid abuse.

The funding will include $920 million to support agreements with states to expand access to medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorders and $30 million to evaluate the effectiveness of programs using medication-assisted treatment in real-world conditions.

The president is scheduled to release the budget today.