Oregon Republicans Propose an End to State’s ‘Failed’ Experiment With Drugs

Oregon House Republican lawmakers shared details on Jan. 11 of a proposal to roll back Measure 110—a first-in-the-nation law that decriminalized possession and use of small amounts of hard drugs, including meth and heroin, while aiming to expand addiction treatment using proceeds from a cannabis sales tax. Since voters approved the measure with 58 percent support in November 2020, open-air drug use and overdoses have skyrocketed and Oregon voters have had a change of heart. Since 2020, Oregon has experienced a 210 percent increase in fentanyl-related fatalities, according to the Oregon Health Authority’s Public Health Division. Overdoses in the state increased between November 2021 and November 2022 by nearly 4.58 percent, surpassing the national average by sevenfold, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention....