Governor Gretchen Whitmer is a lifelong Michigander. She is a lawyer, an educator, former prosecutor, State Representative and Senator. She was the first woman to lead a Senate caucus. But the most important title she boasts is MOM. Inspired by her family, she’s devoted her life to building a stronger Michigan for everyone.
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September 01, 2025
WHEREAS, substance use disorder is a chronic, often relapsing brain disease that causes compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences to the individual and to those in their environment. Substance use disorder is classified as a brain disease due to the changes in the structure and function of the brain as a result of drug and alcohol misuse; and,
WHEREAS, the United States is in the middle of an opioid epidemic, with opioid overdoses killing nearly 81,000 people in 2023. The preliminary 2024 data reported a nearly 32% decrease to about 55,000 overdose deaths involving opioids; and,
WHEREAS, substance use disorders cost Americans more than $1.5 trillion in 2020 in costs related to crime, lost work productivity, and health care; and,
WHEREAS, in the long term, substance use disorder may lead to mental and physical effects such as paranoia, psychosis, immune deficiencies, and organ damage that will require treatment to resolve; and,
WHEREAS, in 2023, nearly 1 in 3 (or 312,000) young adults ages 18 to 25 reported current use of marijuana in Michigan; and,
WHEREAS, in 2023, most publicly funded substance abuse treatment admissions among youth ages 12 to 17 reported marijuana as the primary substance of use and 49,000 (6.5% ) youth statewide ages 12 to 17 reported current marijuana use; and,
WHEREAS, in 2023, 16% of veterans in Michigan were identified as having a substance use disorder in the past year; and,
WHEREAS, in 2023, nearly 1 in 5 (or 1.76 million) people ages 12 and older in Michigan used illicit drugs in the previous month, when surveyed; and,
WHEREAS, in 2023, more than 1.71million individuals ages 12 and older in Michigan met the criteria for having a substance use disorder, which is 20% of the population; and 1.27 million (74.5%) did not receive the needed treatment, and,
WHEREAS, in 2023, 2,931 drug overdose deaths in Michigan were recorded and 78% were related to opioids. Preliminary data show 1,916 overdose deaths in 2024, a 34.6% decrease from 2023; and,
WHEREAS, like other chronic and relapsing diseases, such as diabetes, asthma, or heart disease, substance use disorder can be managed successfully; and,
WHEREAS, support for telehealth services has enabled thousands of Michigan residents to engage safely in substance use disorder prevention, treatment and recovery support services that would have otherwise been inaccessible; and,
WHEREAS, organizations across the state have distributed more than 1,339,548 doses of naloxone since 2020, and harm reduction services promote a pathway to safety and recovery for individuals and communities; and,
WHEREAS, a person’s treatment and recovery is built on their strengths, talents, coping abilities, resources, and inherent values. It addresses the whole person and their community, and is supported by peers, friends, and family members; and,
WHEREAS, during this month, we join with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services and community networks to celebrate recovery and raise awareness of recovery-oriented systems of care working to prevent and treat substance use disorders in our state;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Gretchen Whitmer, governor of the State of Michigan, and Garlin Gilchrist II, lieutenant governor of the State of Michigan, do hereby proclaim September 2025 as Recovery Month in Michigan.