Leidos, Milken Institute Partner on Opioid Addiction, Mental Health Crisis

Leidos has partnered with the Milken Institute Center for Public Health to rally industries against the opioid epidemic and mental health crisis.

Leidos CEO and Chairman Roger Krone, a Potomac Officers Club member and eight-time Wash100 winner, said the coronavirus pandemic turned the opioid epidemic into a full-scale emergency.

“Through this new partnership with the Milken Institute’s Center for Public Health we can devote new resources and solutions to not just the opioid epidemic, but the broader range of mental health issues affecting our society,” Krone said.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, about four in 10 adults in the United States reported symptoms of anxiety or depressive disorder during the pandemic, higher than the one in 10 figure reported in June 2019.

Adults also reported difficulty sleeping or eating, increases in alcohol consumption or substance use and worsening chronic conditions due to worries over the virus.

Leidos said the partnership will be focused on partnering with leaders in the private, government, academic and nonprofit sectors to address the said challenges.

The objective is to create solutions to counter addiction and broader mental health topics such as anxiety, depression and suicide.

A collaborative action group will determine what actions should be taken to improve the overall health of workforces and their communities, Leidos said.

The Milken Institute is a nonprofit economic think tank that publishes research to provide economic opportunities and improve the health of individuals.

Leidos and the Milken Insitute have previously partnered to launch CEO Pledge, an initiative to call on business leaders to do their part in stopping the opioid epidemic.