Today’s issue of WorkCompRecap features some grim news from the National Safety Council, as it comments on provisional CDC data that found more than 107,600 Americans, one every five minutes, died of a drug overdose in 2021.
Because 70% of people struggling with a substance use disorder are employed, the NSC is calling on employers to develop recovery-friendly workplaces, establish policies that support worker mental health and substance use recovery, end addiction stigma, and provide necessary resources. NSC also noted that according to the recently issued National Drug Control Strategy issued by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), workplaces are critical to their employees’ treatment and recovery, and it’s essential that employers adopt recovery-ready workplace policies to prevent substance use in the workforce, provide needed accommodations and supports for those in treatment and recovery, all of which can help improve health and safety.