Heidi Alexander: “this afternoon the Senate passed and sent to the President legislation that Tennesseans and Americans will welcome…”

“this afternoon the Senate passed and sent to the President legislation that Tennesseans and Americans will welcome because it deals with the terrifying fungal meningitis outbreak that occurred more than a year ago that killed 16 Tennesseans and made many others sick. The problem at that time was sterile compounded drugs that turned out not to be sterile. So when they were injected into patients for back pain or neck pain, those tainted drugs caused fungal meningitis and caused a number of Tennesseans to die and many others to become sick. Had it not been for the heroic efforts of the Tennessee State Department of Public Health, many others across the country may have been injected with that tainted medicine and become sick. This is a very important piece of legislation which Senators and House Members have been working on for a year. I am glad it passed. I am sure the President will sign it. In our State, we know how personal this was. There is the story of Diana Reed from Brentwood, TN, who was the caregiver for her husband, who has Lou Gehrig's disease. She had neck pain--maybe because of helping him in and out of a wheelchair-- went to the doctor, and got an injection for her neck pain. The next thing she knew, she had fungal meningitis and she died. Still, her husband with Lou Gehrig's disease lives on. That story has been told in many States.…”