Voices: I’ve treated addiction for 40 years. Trump’s cuts to treatment will lead to deaths in Utah.

As a Utah-based physician who has spent more than 40 years treating people in pain and those struggling with addiction, I have witnessed how a single intervention — at the right moment — can mean the difference between life and death.

Naloxone, the opioid overdose reversal medication, is one of those interventions. It is fast, safe and effective. It has saved tens of thousands of lives, including many here in Utah.

That is why the Trump administration’s proposed cuts to naloxone distribution and addiction treatment funding are not just disappointing — they are dangerous. If enacted, these cuts would cost lives and stall hard-won progress against one of the deadliest public health crises in American history. I urge Utah’s congressional delegation — Sens. Mike Lee and John Curtis and Reps. Blake Moore, Michael Kennedy, Celeste Maloy and Burgess Owens — to oppose any attempt to defund naloxone access or addiction recovery services.

Let’s be clear: Naloxone is not a silver bullet, and it’s not a solution to the overdose crisis on its own. But it is a life preserver, one that gives people another chance to survive — and possibly recover. Without it, people die. And when people die, recovery is no longer an option.

Some argue that naloxone “enables” drug use or that multiple resuscitations are wasteful. That kind of thinking is as morally misguided as it is medically inaccurate. Having a fire extinguisher in your house doesn’t make you a pyromaniac. Carrying naloxone doesn’t make you a drug user. It makes you prepared — and compassionate.

Unfortunately, this kind of stigma is deeply rooted in our culture. Many Americans, including some elected officials, still view addiction as a moral failure rather than a complex medical condition influenced by trauma, poverty, mental health and structural inequality. Harm reduction strategies like naloxone distribution are viewed by some not as evidence-based public health interventions, but as “coddling” people who’ve made bad choices. This punitive mindset is not only cruel — it is deadly.

What’s more, the Trump administration’s budget would also slash funding for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which supports research into better treatments for pain and addiction. These are conditions that affect millions of Americans, and many thousands of Utahns. We cannot afford to go backward.

Utah has already made strides in recognizing addiction as a treatable condition, not a crime. We have expanded access to naloxone through community programs, pharmacies and harm reduction groups. The state Legislature has taken steps to increase access to medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) like buprenorphine. But all of this progress is at risk if federal support is withdrawn.

Moreover, it’s important to acknowledge that Utah has not been immune to the devastation of the overdose crisis. Our rural communities, our veterans, and our Native populations have all been disproportionately affected.

Nationally, overdose deaths have fallen from 114,000 to 87,000 in the past three years — a 24% decline. But that progress is fragile. Cutting funding now would reverse the trend and leave countless families vulnerable.

I have presented multiple times to the FDA on the urgent need for safer opioid formulations and continue to advocate for balanced, evidence-based approaches to pain and addiction care. I can say with confidence that you cannot solve a problem by ignoring its complexity. Addiction is not simply about drugs. It is about people — people struggling with pain, isolation, economic instability and trauma. It is a socioecological problem that manifests biologically and is sustained by policy failures.

That’s why naloxone must be part of a larger, more holistic strategy. It should not only be widely available — it should be free. So should trauma-informed counseling, housing support and job training. These are the kinds of investments that break the cycle of addiction and build healthy communities.

We cannot afford to play politics with people’s lives. The opioid crisis does not care about party lines. It affects red states and blue states, cities and rural towns, the insured and the uninsured. Utah’s congressional delegation should take a principled stand and oppose the proposed cuts to naloxone and addiction recovery funding. Their constituents’ lives depend on it.

We are at a critical juncture. Either we double down on evidence-based interventions — or we retreat into fear, stigma and false economies. Naloxone alone won’t save us. But cutting it will kill us.

Lynn R. Webster, MD, is a physician in Salt Lake City and a Senior Fellow for U.S. Policy based in Washington, D.C. He is a former president of the American Academy of Pain Medicine and author of “The Painful Truth.”

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