May 07, 2018

Manchin Applauds First Lady's "Be Best" Initiative, Especially Its Focus on How the Opioid Epidemic Impacts Children

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) applauded First Lady Melania Trump’s “Be Best” initiative, which in part focuses on how the opioid epidemic impacts children and highlighted Huntington’s Lily’s Place, a facility that provides short-term medical care to babies born addicted to drugs.  

“I applaud the First Lady for choosing to focus on how one of the biggest challenges facing our country, the opioid epidemic, impacts the most vulnerable among us, our children. The First Lady also highlighted Lily’s Place in Huntington, which is doing crucial work to help our communities and families overcome opioid use disorder. I’m glad the First Lady is bringing national attention to this crisis and the tireless work West Virginians are doing to fight the opioid epidemic. I look forward to continuing to work with the First Lady, President Trump and his administration to protect our children from this horrible public health emergency,” Senator Manchin said.   

Today, the First Lady rolled out the “Be Best” initiative, which includes helping children dealing with the opioid epidemic and preventing cyberbullying. The First Lady mentioned Lily’s Place in her speech. Lily’s Place provides treatment for infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), a syndrome that occurs after birth in infants suffering from opioid withdrawals. West Virginia has the highest rate of NAS in the country, and Lily’s Place handles overflow from hospitals in the Huntington area.  The non-profit is also the first clinic of its kind to provide counseling and treatment to parents.

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