The director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy called Whitney Houston's death a "teachable moment," according to CBS News. The statement from Gil Kerlikowske comes a few days after President Obama released a statement about her death in which he said the family was praying for the Houstons.
In an interview with CBS News, the drug czar said that Houston's death was an opportunity to warn people off the dangers of substance abuse. "Her death is absolutely tragic, and this brings attention to the problem that she had talked about in the past, and that certainly is prescription drugs," Kerlikowske sais. "It affects a huge number of people in this country and has driven deaths to very very high numbers — well over 15,000."
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While the cause of the singer's death has not been determined yet, there were bottles of prescription drugs found at the scene of her death. The Los Angeles coroner's office said, however, that the number of bottles was not unusual.
Read more at CBS News.
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