Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody has taken legal action against the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for allegedly withholding information regarding the use of federal grant funds to purchase drug paraphernalia, including crack pipes. In February 2022, Florida sent Freedom of Information Act requests to the two agencies seeking records about a Biden administration program that used taxpayer money to purchase safe smoking kits for drug addicts. The program was supposed to be a “harm reduction effort” that did not include crack pipes or other drug paraphernalia, but subsequent investigations found kits containing such materials.
According to reports, kits obtained from five major U.S. cities, including Baltimore, Boston, New York, Richmond, and Washington, D.C., contained crack pipes. Kits available from a harm-reduction center located just blocks away from the U.S. Capitol and two elementary schools also contained drug paraphernalia. The state of Florida filed a FOIA request for access to federal records regarding this program in February 2022, but the agencies failed to respond.
Attorney General Moody is taking legal action to make DOJ and HHS provide relevant information regarding this federal program, so the truth can be uncovered. She believes that the American people have the right to know if their tax dollars are being used to purchase drug paraphernalia for drug addicts. News of the alleged reckless program comes as the nation is experiencing record drug overdose deaths, with more than 100,000 deaths reported in 2021. The U.S. is currently more than $31 trillion in debt, and the federal government is deepening the record-high national debt.
Attorney General Moody has been actively pushing President Biden to take action to stop the flow of deadly substances like fentanyl into the country, including declaring the substance a weapon of mass destruction, and making Mexican drug cartels foreign terrorist organizations. She has also created the Dose of Reality Florida website to provide information to Floridians about the dangers of opioid misuse and where to find addiction support resources.
This legal action highlights the growing concerns of drug overdose deaths and addiction in the United States. While harm reduction efforts are necessary, it is crucial to ensure that federal grant funds are not being used to purchase drug paraphernalia for drug addicts. Attorney General Moody’s efforts to uncover the truth and hold federal agencies accountable for their actions are commendable and could lead to positive changes in federal programs aimed at reducing drug use and overdose deaths.
