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.
A 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.
