NSC Congratulates Sara Bailey Nation’s Drug Czar

On January 6, Sara Bailey was confirmed as Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy. 

Today, the National Safety Council issued the following statement on the confirmation. 
 
“The National Safety Council congratulates Sara Bailey on her successful confirmation as the next Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy,” said Lorraine Martin, NSC CEO. “NSC looks forward to continuing our collaboration on important safety issues, including drug overdose, driver impairment and cannabis rescheduling.”   

NSC and the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) have collaborated over the years on workplace wellbeing issues, including mental health and substance use, encouraging employers to become Recovery Ready Workplaces, and saving lives from overdose through expanding access to opioid overdose reversal medication.  

According to the CDC, more than 80,000 people died in 2024 from drug overdoses, with the majority involving opioids. The odds of dying by opioid overdose in the United States are now higher than from gun violence, vehicle crashes and suicide. In the workplace, overdoses account for 10% of all deaths on the job. NSC supports efforts to decrease preventable fatalities from overdose through research, employer resources, policy advocacy and education programs. 

Impaired driving remains one of the biggest safety issues on U.S. roads, contributing to thousands of deaths each year. NSC advocates for zero roadway fatalities by 2050 through the NSC-led Road to Zero Coalition. 

Ms. Bailey assumes her new role on the heels of President Trump’s signing of an executive order expediting the completion of the rescheduling process for cannabis. In a statement, NSC cautioned that although reclassifying cannabis as a less dangerous drug would remove barriers to expanding much-needed safety research, the move must be accompanied by actions to prevent fatalities and serious injuries from impairment.