Every time we look at the news, there seems to be another tragic story of a young man or woman who has fallen victim to the heroin and opioid epidemic. I hear from law enforcement and emergency medical technicians about young people who have overdosed and need to be revived so they can be transported to the hospital – or, worse yet, who cannot be revived and end up at the morgue. I’ve spoken with constituents and parents whose children are battling addiction, and who know the human cost of this epidemic all too well.

This is a problem not just affecting the suburban communities, like Clay, Cicero and Manlius. Its impact has been felt across every upstate city and even in rural communities, like Fabius and Tully. In 2015, Onondaga County alone reported a 19 percent rise in opioid deaths from the prior year.

The causes are varied, whether it is the overabundance and abuse of prescription painkillers, access to more potent gateway drugs or despair from the struggling job market. The real question is, what are we going to do about it?

The unfortunate reality, however, is that there simply aren’t enough treatment and recovery facilities to handle the number of cases. What is equally disconcerting is that the treatment offered often does not last long enough or treat patients thoroughly enough to break the cycle of addiction.

Doctors and police officers alike will tell you they see many repeat customers: addicts who show up in the emergency room, get stabilized and are eventually released, only to fall victim to their demons again and end up back in the emergency room days or weeks later. Many of these addicts want help, but are unable to receive adequate, effective treatment. There are several reasons for this, whether it be that they are forced to wait for a slot to open up in one of the few existing programs, they have had insufficient or inadequate treatment, they lack the insurance coverage needed to get effective treatment or that they simply don’t believe recovery is possible.

This is a tragic cycle with dire consequences. To beat this epidemic, we need more treatment and recovery facilities that offer better, more thorough treatment that truly helps recovering addicts.

I have been working with Sen. Patty Ritchie (R-Watertown) to introduce legislation requiring insurance companies to cover at least 90 days of treatment for opioid and heroin addiction at an inpatient rehabilitation facility with a doctor’s prescription (A.9211). Currently, state law requires coverage for addiction treatment, but does not mandate a minimum length of time. My hope is that by improving access to treatment, we can break the repetitive cycle that is costing too many lives, while also encouraging more treatment and recovery programs to open.

We can move toward this goal by investing in existing healthcare facilities to expand the number of beds available. In this year’s state budget, the governor has proposed $141 million to support heroin and opiate abuse prevention, treatment and recovery programs, which is a good start.

We must also enhance the current treatment regimen. Local hospitals have been working, with the support of elected officials like myself, to better treat addiction and develop the best ways to treat opioid and heroin overdose patients. Moving forward, we need the help of insurance companies to make that happen.

These are just some of the steps we can take. Clearly, much more needs to happen if we are to address and beat this epidemic. None of us has to look too far beyond our own families and our neighborhoods to know why we should.