Political Quotes

“today I wish to join my colleagues in supporting the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act. This bipartisan legislation takes a strong and balanced approach to tackling the prescription drug and heroin epidemic our Nation faces, and I am proud to be a cosponsor. I would like to note the hard work by many of my colleagues and their staffs--Senators Whitehouse, Ayotte, Coons, Kirk, Klobuchar, and Portman. Their States have been especially hard hit by this epidemic, and this bill would help alleviate some of the suffering. We are all well aware of the sobering statistics. Drug overdoses kill more than 120 Americans each day--more than motor vehicle crashes or gunshot wounds. Opioid and heroin overdoses account for more than half of these deaths. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2014, 25,760 people died from prescription drugs, and of that, 18,893 deaths were caused by opioid painkillers. Heroin caused an additional 10,574 deaths. These numbers have continually increased over the past 15 years, and today we are in the midst of an epidemic. That is why we need this bill. We need a comprehensive response to a problem that has touched every State of our country. The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act strengthens our substance abuse prevention, treatment, recovery, and law enforcement infrastructure. While it focuses on prescription opioid abuse and heroin use, it also has the potential to help other drug problems that we face.…”