HHS Secretary Tom Price, MD, and Kellyanne Conway, special counsel to President Donald Trump, stopped at Fire Station No. 2 in Charleston, W.V., as a part of Dr. Price's "listening tour" launched for the purpose of gathering information to develop solutions to the nation's opioid crisis, according to the Charleston Gazette-Mail.
During the event, firefighters and paramedics relayed harrowing stories about their experiences as first-responders working in a state that has been devastated by opioid abuse. Officers told several stories, including that of a woman who died of an overdose while six-months pregnant.
"If this were any other disease, we'd have all the resources come to bear to figure out what the infection is, how did it get into our county and what are we going to do about it," said Dr. Price, according to the Gazette-Mail. "This is a public health issue. This isn't a criminal justice issue."
In 2016, more than 860 people died of a fatal opioid overdose in West Virginia, according to the Gazette-Mail.
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