Senators Hassan, Shaheen Statements on New Analysis Showing Economic Impact of Opioid Crisis in New Hampshire

In 2016, the opioid crisis cost New Hampshire over $5.3 billion

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen today released the following statements on a new report about the economic impact of the opioid crisis in New Hampshire. The analysis, prepared by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Democratic staff and modeled after a national analysis conducted by President Trump’s Council of Economic Advisers, found that in 2016 alone the opioid crisis cost New Hampshire more than $5.3 billion from a variety of factors including health care spending, substance use disorder treatment, criminal justice, and lost productivity.

“This new report on the economic impact of the opioid crisis in New Hampshire reiterates just how devastating this crisis is for our communities, economy, and our entire state,” said Senator Hassan, member of the Senate HELP Committee. “Now more than ever, we must continue to act urgently to strengthen prevention, treatment, recovery, and support for law enforcement. The bipartisan Opioid Crisis Response Act is an important step forward in those efforts, and I am pleased that this legislation, which includes several key provisions I’ve championed to help turn the tide of this deadly epidemic, passed out of the Senate Health Committee yesterday. I will keep working every single day with members of both parties to step up federal efforts to help support those on the front lines of this crisis and save lives.”  

“This report underscores the necessity of viewing the opioid epidemic as both a public health and economic crisis,” said Senator Shaheen. “This is an emergency in every sense of the word, costing countless lives, billions of dollars, and affecting every community in New Hampshire. To adequately combat this crisis, we still need a federal response that matches its severity. I’m pleased by recent bipartisan efforts to increase funding to respond to this epidemic but more needs to be done at the federal level to save lives and turn the tide of this crisis.”

The new analysis was released following the Senate HELP committee’s vote yesterday to approve the bipartisan Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018. (See full statement from Senator Hassan on committee passage of the bipartisan Opioid Crisis Response Act HERE, and Senator Shaheen’s statement HERE). 

For more on the cost of the opioid crisis in New Hampshire, see the analysis HERE.

Learn more about the HELP Committee Democratic staff’s methodology of the new analysis HERE.

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