Mark Takano: “I thank Ranking Member Pallone for yielding time. I rise today in opposition to H.R. 382, the Pandemic is Over Act. This…”

“I thank Ranking Member Pallone for yielding time. I rise today in opposition to H.R. 382, the Pandemic is Over Act. This is an effort by our Republican colleagues to hastily terminate a public health emergency designation that will have damaging effects on our Nation's veterans and those who care for them. Currently, this emergency designation grants our government a number of critical flexibilities that not only allow it to work more efficiently and effectively but that are essential to support America's veteran population. When we passed the CARES Act in 2020, we did so carefully and thoughtfully to ensure that veterans would be able to safely and quickly access the care they needed throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. We also ensured the Department of Veterans Affairs and its employees had the tools and flexibilities they needed to meet their mission. I am especially concerned by the risk that would be caused by hastily terminating healthcare providers' ability to prescribe controlled substances via telehealth. This will severely impact millions of patients' access to medications they need to manage chronic pain, complex mental health conditions, and substance abuse disorders. Veterans who experience these conditions at greater rates than their nonveteran counterparts are among those who would be severely affected. VA estimates at least 47,000 veterans have active controlled substance prescriptions from prescribers they have never seen in person.…”