In a draft report, the cross-party group of lawmakers argue that doing so would force officials to prioritise attention and funding to the issue.
“With approximately 142 Americans dying every day, America is enduring a death toll equal to September 11th every three weeks“, the authors write.
One third of Americans were prescribed opioids in 2015, the group found.
The report also recommends that doctors curb excessive prescriptions of opioid medications, and improve access to pain management treatment techniques.
