Please go to the Portland Press Herald to read the full article.
The summit convened by Gov. Janet Mills attracts about 1,000 people and highlights ideas for addressing the epidemic of opioid use disorder.
By: Joe Lawlor, Staff Writer
Sam Quinones, author of the book “Dreamland,” speaks Monday at the governor’s opioid conference in Augusta. Andy Molloy/Kennebec Journal
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AUGUSTA — While federal and New England state officials discussed strategies for combating the opioid crisis at a statewide summit Monday, Mainers shared personal stories of family and friends dying of drug overdoses and their own struggles with substance use disorder.
About 1,000 people attended the “Turning the Tide” opioid summit at the Augusta Civic Center, an event organized by Gov. Janet Mills’ administration. It was the largest event of its kind in Maine since the opioid crisis accelerated about five years ago. Maine experienced a record 418 drug overdose deaths in 2017, declining to 354 deaths in 2018, but the deaths are still historically high.
Attending Monday were Sam Quinones, a Los Angeles-based investigative journalist and author of the book “Dreamland”; Michael Botticelli, former White House director of National Drug Control Policy during the Obama administration; and Dr. Patrice Harris, president of the American Medical Association and others.