Local, national and government experts will address and discuss solutions to the opioid crisis in Tennessee today at a summit in Nashville hosted by Healthy Tennessee.
The summit will be from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Hermitage Hotel.
Speakers will include U.S. Rep. David Kustoff (R-TN-08) and State House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-TN-25).
This is the second opioid summit presented by Senate candidate Dr. Manny Sethi’s non-profit health care organization, Healthy Tennessee.
A list of Healthy Tennessee’s recent events, including today’s summit, is available here on their website.
The organization in March launched an effort called the Healthy Tennessee Challenge to invite high school students to create action plans to educate their peers and loved ones about the dangers of opioid abuse and to campaign to stay drug-free, The Tennessee Star reported.
Sethi in early September announced he would step down from leadership of Healthy Tennessee to focus on his run to replace retiring U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN). His wife, Maya, who co-founded the organization in 2011, stepped into the roles of president and chief executive officer.
“When Maya and I founded Healthy Tennessee, we did it because of our passion for the health of our fellow Tennesseans,” Sethi said. “Ten years later that passion still drives both of us, and while I’m focused on meeting folks around our state as I seek public office, Healthy Tennessee is in great hands with my wife, Maya, While I will not be in a leadership role for the coming months I will continue to be involved on the board and joining together with our volunteers across the state to care for patient.”
In August, Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery joined 38 other state attorneys general in sending a letter to ask Congressional leaders to remove barriers that prevent health care providers from offering treatment for opioid use disorder.
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Jason M. Reynolds has more than 20 years’ experience as a journalist at outlets of all sizes.
