Robert Houton is the director of the Bethesda-based company Team Vaccinate.
He’s leading the charge to fight a crisis that claims the lives of more than 150 people a day, and for him, it’s personal.
“My children, their friend’s brother who was a high school student died from a counterfeit Percocet pill laced with fentanyl,” Houton said.
He added, “We were at the basketball game that memorialized his passing, and you could hear a pin drop here at the school and it was just very moving.”
He said his goal is to save lives, leading the lobbying charge on legalizing fentanyl test strips across the country and increasing access.
He started lobbying for legislation back in January, cold calling and emailing senators and representatives to do something.
“It is just terrible because teens are dying and it is going to continue happening,” Houton said.
Last week, he said he finally saw the fruits of his labor. Bi-Partisan legislation called the STRIP Act was introduced in Congress. The bill would legalize Fentanyl test strips nationwide.
“Every parent I have spoken with is so happy to hear that there is another tool out there that their children will have when they are not around -- if they are at a party or studying for an exam,” Houton said.
The proposed law would take the testing strips off the “drug paraphernalia list” list. In Maryland and Virginia, the test strips are legal, and in D.C. they have been decriminalized. Right now, the tests are mostly available at clinics and public health centers, but getting one isn’t easy.
Houton told 7news his team has also been talking to the CEO of CVS, asking them to consider making testing strips available over the counter at drugstores.
“Any parent will do anything to make sure their child is living,” Houton said.