The opioid crisis in the country is the topic for Fountain Hills Republican Club’s next meeting Saturday, March 16.

The event starts at 9 a.m. at the Community Center. All are welcome to attend.

Dr. Matthew Keene, executive director of the Suboxone Certified Addiction Network, is guest speaker.

An epidemic that touches families across the nation is the misuse of and addiction to opioids. It has become a serious national crisis affecting public health as well as social and economic welfare. The drugs in question include prescription pain relievers, heroin, and synthetic opioids such as fentanyl.

Every day more than 130 people in the United States die after overdosing on opioids.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that the total “economic burden” of prescription opioid misuse alone in the United States is $78.5 billion a year, including the cost of healthcare, lost productivity, addiction treatment, and criminal justice involvement.

Keene has an extensive academic background, which includes performing a wide range of research and authoring numerous publications. He co-founded the Scottsdale Center for the Advancement of Neuroscience (S.C.A.N.), an internationally recognized “Center of Neuroscience Excellence.”

He attended Georgetown University School of Medicine on a full military scholarship, graduated with multiple honors and completed his residency training at the prestigious Cleveland Clinic Foundation.

He was a major in the U.S. Air Force and served as a hostage negotiator in addition to his medical duties. He is board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and has received subspecialty certification in Addiction Psychiatry.

Registration begins at 8:15 a.m. Coffee and light breakfast refreshments will be served.