Ledger · First term · № 116
Opioid 'national emergency' declaration promised for 'next week'
Partial“We are going to be doing that next week. By the way, you know that's a big step... It's a very important step, and to get to that step, a lot of work has to be done.”
- Promised
- , Remarks to reporters at the White House, asked about declaring a written national emergency
- Stated deadline
- “next week” → October 23, 2017
- Overdue by
- 8 years, 10 months as of September 22, 2026
- Re-promised
- 2 times with a fresh deadline
- Topic
- Health care
- Era
- First term
What happened
Ten days later, on October 26, 2017, he did not declare a national emergency. He directed HHS to declare a narrower 90-day public health emergency under the Public Health Service Act, a tool with no new money attached. USA TODAY tallied 77 days of repeated promises. It followed an August 10, 2017 pledge in which he said 'I'm saying officially right now, it is an emergency' and nothing was signed.
Sources
- Trump Administration Declares Opioid Crisis A Public Health Emergency
- Trump's Emergency Declaration on Opioid Crisis Will Require Further Funding
- Trump Says Opioid Epidemic Is a National Emergency
- Trump's opioids announcement was not the declaration some wanted
- Trump Still Hasn't Fulfilled Promise To Declare Opioid Epidemic A National Emergency