Louisiana To Receive $8.1M To Help Combat Opioid Addiction

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Louisiana is slated to receive $8.1 million from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to help combat the opioid epidemic.

         News outlets report the grant is part of $485 million the federal government has set aside to help states with prevention, treatment and recovery services.

         The money was distributed to states based on their rates of overdose deaths and unmet need for opioid addiction treatment.

         According to research from the Institute for Healthcare Informatics, Louisiana has the sixth-highest opioid pain reliever prescribing rate in the country over a year-long period through June 2016.

         U.S. Sen. John Kennedy says opioid addiction knows no boundaries and that's why it's more important than ever to join together and fight back against an epidemic that tears families apart.