Bertino-Tarrant Praises New Opioid Transparency Law

SHOREWOOD, IL - Democrat state senator Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant is pleased with new legislation aimed at bringing more publicity to the dangers of heroin and opioid abuse. The senator announced on Friday that a new law that takes effect in January will require the Illinois Department of Human Services to maintain a website to educate people about heroin and prescription opioid abuses. This website will include warning signs of addiction and tips for parents on how to best discuss the dangers of drug addiction with their children. Information will also be posted online about treatment options and services to get help.

"This new website will get information and important resources to the families and people who need them," Bertino-Tarrant said in a statement issued by her staff.

The fact that seventy-seven people died last year across Will County related to heroin and opioid-related abuses shows the seriousness of the drug problem on a local level, according to Bertino-Tarrant.

And it's not just a big city problem. Drug overdoses have impacted area villages including Shorewood.

This summer, 25-year-old Shorewood resident Christopher Shanine was found dead near his bicycle in a parkway inside the Kipling Estates subdivision. The Will County Coroner's Office later determined that Shanine died from Fentanyl Intoxication. His death was ruled to be an accidental drug overdose.

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