Another bill would ease the way for school employees around the state to administer a drug that halts the effects of overdoses. Others would funnel more money into fighting opioid abuse, tighten the rules for getting some drugs from pharmacies and give doctors more guidance on treating addiction.
The measures were taken up in a special legislative session the Republican governor called starting in January. They enjoyed broad bipartisan support.
“We’ve taken serious steps to combat this issue, including creating the Governor’s Task Force on Opioid Abuse, but we won’t stop until there are zero opioid overdoses in Wisconsin," Walker said in a statement.
But Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling (D-Milwaukee) said the state should be doing more on the issue.
“It doesn’t make sense to wait until someone is already hooked and battling an opioid addiction," she said in a statement. "By improving health care access and restoring drug abuse prevention grants, we can get to the root of the opioid epidemic rather than simply scratching the surface.”
