White House and The GOP Agree…On Fighting Fentanyl

The Biden administration voiced public support for the HALT Fentanyl Act, first introduced by two GOP congressmen, which would permanently classify all fentanyl-related substances as Schedule I drugs and would prioritize giving law enforcement the tools to slow the trafficking of this lethal substance. In 2022, America saw over 100,000 overdoses, and 75,000 of those were estimated to be due to illegal fentanyl. Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) was one of the lawmakers who first sponsored this bill, and he joins the podcast to explain how his legislation will confront the rampant fentanyl production that is costing U.S. lives, why classifying fentanyl as a Schedule I drug will give the government more authority to crack down on traffickers, and the underlying issues driving this synthetic opioid crisis.

May is mental health awareness month, and the U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy, issued a warning on Tuesday, calling social media a ‘profound risk’ to America’s youth and responsible for recent years’ rising rates of depression and anxiety. Some states are taking the initiative to place guardrails, like in Arkansas, where the state government passed the Social Media Safety Act, requiring social media platforms to verify users’ age and request parental permission. The minimum age listed to access many of these websites is thirteen; however, Dr. Murthy argues that is way too young. Licensed psychotherapist and the author of the new book, “Raising Healthy Teenagers,” Tom Kersting, joins the podcast to talk about why social media is contributing to the youth mental health crisis in America, how legislation would address social media’s unhealthy impact, and what parents can do to prioritize their children’s mental health.

Plus, commentary by columnist David Marcus.