Summary

Health and Human Services Secretary RFK Jr., despite his history of heroin addiction, supports ending a $56 million federal Narcan distribution program that helped drive a nearly 24% drop in U.S. overdose deaths in 2024.

The program, administered by SAMHSA, trained over 66,000 people and distributed 282,500 kits.

Critics warn that cutting Narcan funding could reverse life-saving progress, especially as fentanyl-related overdoses persist.

Kennedy argues the crisis requires deeper societal change beyond “nuts and bolts” solutions, while public health advocates condemn the move as dangerously premature.

    • andros_rex@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      14
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      2 months ago

      Sure - addiction can fuck anyone.

      Some of us can afford rehab though. And it’s especially fucked when someone can afford rehab, benefits from it, and then turns around to deny others help.

      If RFK Jr left his addiction with a sense of empathy for the people who don’t have family members who will quietly cover up when one of your relatives kills someone while driving drunk, that would be a different story.

      I am not empathic to rich addicts. The fact that my stepdad was able to get weekend jail on his 5th DUI and used me and my siblings to start his car - while a schizophrenic who self medicates with opioids in my state will be killed in jail - nah, fuck them with a rusty pole and no tetanus shot.

    • Madison420@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      2 months ago

      It’s not mental health persay, wellness sure but he’s not insane he’s just historically a lonely loser that had to buy friendship.

      This fuckin weirdo used to hang out at the dump and eat trash with his birds of prey… Freggins this freggins that but they don’t do that shit at the dump.

      • He is very much mentally unwell. Hanging at the dump eating animals his birds killed on acid. He gave his 14 year old cousin acid.

        He killed people in Samoa, including 40 children, with his vaccine denial. He thinks he knows more than all the doctors in the world who disagree with him. He is mentally ill. Narcissist at a minimum.

        • Madison420@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          2 months ago

          So what? The giving it to a child isn’t great but doing acid is fine it’s one of the safest drugs on earth.

          Yeah that’s being a self important piece of shit, neither of those things equal mental health issues. Not every asshole has an excuse and people need to stop defaulting towards mental health because it’s extremely offensive to people with actual mental health issues.