By Greg Jordan, Bluefield Daily Telegraph
BLUEFIELD, W.Va. — Attorneys general serving West Virginia and Virginia came together Wednesday in Bluefield to speak about how their states are addressing the opioid overdose epidemic as well as the threat posed by an even deadlier substance known as fentanyl.
The public forum Standing Against Crime Together: Discussion with Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares and West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey was conducted before an audience Wednesday morning in the Historic Granada Theater in downtown Bluefield to speak about substance abuse and overdose deaths in both their states.
Former Virginia Gov. George Allen opened the discussion about opioid abuse and how it has impacted both states for decades.
“This epidemic has led to a concerning number of people dying from it and the crime that is spawned from it,” Allen said. “And it also affects employment rates. I know that Congressman (Morgan) Griffith tries to do what he can at the federal level in this regard, but the people who have their boots on the ground in the communities and are enforcing the laws and responding to the deaths, overdoses and a variety of other crimes spawned from it.”
West Virginia General Patrick Morrisey first spoke about how the opioid abuse epidemic has impacted the Mountain State. He said it was one of the essential challenges the state is facing. West Virginia needs to not only have good tax rates and avoid over-regulation, but it needs strong workforce participation, too.
