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DOJ, DEA Want Drug Companies To Produce Less Opioids In 2019

The Trump administration wants to help battle the opioid crisis by lowering manufacturing quotas for six key drugs in 2019.
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The Trump administration wants to help combat the nation's opioid crisis by reducing manufacturing limits.

The government sets production quotas for Schedule I and II drugs. On Thursday, the Department of Justice and the DEA announced their plan to lower the 2019 quotas for six of the most frequently abused opioids — including fentanyl, hydrocodone, morphine and oxycodone.

new estimate from the CDC says over 72,000 people died of a drug overdose in 2017. The agency estimates nearly 48,000 of those deaths were caused by opioids. 

This is the third year in a row production quotas have been decreased for certain opioids. But that's just one way the Trump administration is trying to tackle the crisis. 

Attorney General Jeff Sessions created a team to focus on investigating doctors and pharmacies who push opioids. And the DOJ has joined some lawsuits that states have filed against some drug manufacturers. 

But Thursday in a Cabinet meeting, President Trump suggested going a step further. He wants Sessions to file his own federal lawsuit against certain companies who supply opioids.