• strict warning: Non-static method view::load() should not be called statically in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/views.module on line 906.
  • strict warning: Declaration of views_handler_argument::init() should be compatible with views_handler::init(&$view, $options) in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/handlers/views_handler_argument.inc on line 0.
  • strict warning: Declaration of views_handler_filter::options_validate() should be compatible with views_handler::options_validate($form, &$form_state) in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/handlers/views_handler_filter.inc on line 0.
  • strict warning: Declaration of views_handler_filter::options_submit() should be compatible with views_handler::options_submit($form, &$form_state) in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/handlers/views_handler_filter.inc on line 0.
  • strict warning: Declaration of views_handler_filter_node_status::operator_form() should be compatible with views_handler_filter::operator_form(&$form, &$form_state) in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/modules/node/views_handler_filter_node_status.inc on line 0.
  • strict warning: Non-static method view::load() should not be called statically in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/views.module on line 906.
  • strict warning: Non-static method view::load() should not be called statically in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/views.module on line 906.
  • strict warning: Non-static method view::load() should not be called statically in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/views.module on line 906.
  • strict warning: Non-static method view::load() should not be called statically in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/views.module on line 906.
  • strict warning: Non-static method view::load() should not be called statically in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/views.module on line 906.
  • strict warning: Non-static method view::load() should not be called statically in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/views.module on line 906.
  • strict warning: Non-static method view::load() should not be called statically in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/views.module on line 906.
  • strict warning: Non-static method view::load() should not be called statically in /home/glencoenews/www/www/sites/all/modules/views/views.module on line 906.

Letter - There’s still plenty of work to do on opioid issue

To the editor,
In Minnesota, we have taken appropriate steps to ensure that prescription drug manufacturers are held accountable for the role they have played in the opioid epidemic. Federal, state and local governments are taking the necessary steps to ensure that drug companies, doctors, and pharmacists do all they can to ensure a safe and proper delivery of prescription drugs.
There has been a persistent focus on the pharmaceutical side of this issue at the Minnesota Capitol in recent sessions. While that approach is important and vital to the fight against opioid addiction, it ignores the issue of illicit drugs in our communities and fails to acknowledge the work of our law enforcement officials who are working to combat the illicit drug trade.
While prescription drug overdoses get a lot of press coverage, the fact is that most overdose deaths come as a result of illegal drug use. In McLeod County, news stories regarding methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin and other drug related arrests are fairly common. These widely distributed illicit drugs are a major health risk for our citizens.
Recent data from the Minnesota Department of Health shows us that the opioid epidemic is changing as synthetic opioid overdose deaths, often involving the drug fentanyl, have increased while other drug overdoses have decreased.
Fentanyl is a dangerous, addictive pain management drug that is 100 times stronger than morphine and 50 times more powerful than heroin. When it is brought into our country and traded on the streets, it is proven to be deadly.
While some street drugs are manufactured locally, the majority of illegal drugs in our communities are trafficked from other states and countries—namely China and Mexico. United States Border Patrol seizures of foreign fentanyl have steadily risen in recent years from nearly 460 pounds in 2016 to 1,800 pounds in 2018. United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement has identified China as the primary source of illicit fentanyl in the United States oftentimes transported via mail or shipped to Mexico to be smuggled into the country. These brave men and women working to protect our borders have dedicated themselves to keeping deadly drugs out of our country and they deserve our support and appreciation.
In McLeod County, we are doing everything we can to deal with the realities of this fight. Law enforcement, elected officials, and community leaders are committed to making our communities safer.
Legislative and other leaders in St. Paul and Washington must understand that local law enforcement and border control officials, those on the front lines of this battle, cannot be successful without adequate funding policies. Investment in those law enforcement programs and strategies that seek to support the prosecution of drug laws should be a priority.
In order to properly fight this changing epidemic, there needs to be a plan in place to keep Americans from becoming addicted to opioid medications and we must redouble our efforts to keep fentanyl and other synthetic drugs out of our nation and off the streets. Without these efforts, the tragedy of the opioid epidemic and illegal drugs will continue in our communities.

State Representative
Glenn Gruenhagen