deputy director, national affairs with Drug Policy Alliance @DrugPolicyOrg & @DrugPolicyAct in Washington, DC; #NoMoreDrugWar advocate; GA roots; views my own
Apr 21, 2021 • 6 tweets • 4 min read
The House will vote TODAY to extend a Trump DOJ policy that increases the application of severe mandatory minimum penalties for #fentanyl-related substances. The bill is cosponsored by @FrankPallone, a top House Democrat in charge of federal health policy. docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/…
The last time this Trump-era policy was extended by Congress was 15 mths ago. House Dem leaders said then they wouldn’t extend this again, but seek public health alternatives to #fentanyl-related substances instead. 15 mths have gone by & @FrankPallone & @SpeakerPelosi punted.
Apr 7, 2021 • 26 tweets • 6 min read
UPDATE 🧵ON FENTANYL BAN FIGHT: I’ve been quiet about #fentanyl for a min, but that’s because my days (and nights) have been very full since the start of 2021 working with a broad coalition of stakeholders to ensure that Trump’s hardline policy of class-wide scheduling of.../1
...fentanyl-related substances EXPIRES as scheduled on May 6th. ONE MONTH. That’s all that remains before Trump’s policy of class-wide scheduling of fentanyl-related substances is set to expire. This policy was first imposed by Trump in 2018 and was renewed by Congress .../2
Mar 11, 2021 • 19 tweets • 10 min read
BIG NEWS (🧵): $30 million in emergency funding for harm reduction programs is tucked into the coronavirus relief package that Congress passed today and is now headed to President Biden’s desk. This is HISTORIC, unprecedented funding. Never before has Congress approved .../1
...dedicated federal funding for syringe services programs and harm reduction. For decades, these providers have been on the frontlines meeting people who use drugs where they are, building trust, providing services that have kept people alive, improved health and .../2
Dec 21, 2020 • 22 tweets • 12 min read
BIG NEWS💥💥💥: The DRUG CONVICTION QUESTION is officially being ELIMINATED from the federal student aid form known as the FAFSA as part of the massive year-end package that Congress is rushing to pass. For two decades, the Dept of Education included the drug Q on the FAFSA.. 1/
...The question asked student applicants about a past drug conviction. Those who answered yes could lose eligibility for ALL forms of student aid including Pell and work study. The question was narrowed in 2016 to only apply to a drug conviction that occurred while a student...2/
