WHEREAS, the Teamsters Union has long been at the forefront of many of the most important issues facing society; and

WHEREAS, the over-prescribing of opiate pain medicines has harmed millions of pain patients and led to sharp increases in addiction, heroin use and overdose deaths; and

WHEREAS, this epidemic is having a significant impact on IBT members and their families and is placing a tremendous strain on the health care system, the U.S. Veterans Administration, workplaces across the country and communities as a whole; and

WHEREAS, prescription pain killers are the most abused drugs in the United States, with more than three times as many Americans dying from them than  illegal drugs.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED at this 29th International Convention that the International Brotherhood of Teamsters acknowledge the toll opiate painkillers are taking on both Teamster families and America at large; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Teamsters call for greater education and outreach related to prescription drug addiction; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that groups like “Breaking Barriers – Hope Is Alive,” an Akron, Ohio non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization founded by Local 24 President Travis Bornstein and his family in loving memory of his (their) son, Tyler Bornstein, who at the age of 23 died of a heroin/fentanyl overdose in September 2014, play a profound role in expanding awareness and education of addiction issues; and

FINALLY, BE IT RESOLVED that the Teamsters encourage government at every level to increase treatment options for all those afflicted by the disease of addiction.