First lady: ‘We need to change’ arc of opioid crisis

WASHINGTON – Melania Trump says many people are grieving after losing loved ones to the opioid crisis and is telling a White House summit “we need to change that.”

The first lady opened Thursday’s gathering by reading from a letter from a woman who lost her 29-year-old son to drugs last September. The woman appeals to Mrs. Trump as a mother and asks the first lady to help “lost souls” before drugs kill them. The first lady has an 11-year-old son.

Mrs. Trump asked audience members to remember the woman as they work through issues related to the epidemic.

The first lady added: “Sadly, she is not alone in her grief, and we need to change that.”

The White House is highlighting Trump administration efforts to combat the drug crisis.