Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, as an emergency medicine physician, I know firsthand what this devastating opioid crisis does to families, to individuals, to children, to parents. I have taken care of many who have come in overdosed, blue in the face, not breathing, many of which I have been resuscitated successfully and a few tragic losses along the way. I know that many of them rely on being able to get the treatment whenever we are able to convince them to get treatment, but one of the biggest concerns that they have is: How much is this going to cost? Many of them rely on Medicaid to be able to take advantage of some of the rehabilitation and the medication-assisted treatments that are offered to them. But, unfortunately, many of them, being uninsured, are unable to do so, and so then they repeat the cycle of abuse and misuse, and unfortunately, again, they present themselves overdosed in the emergency department. I have an article here that sheds light on the importance of Medicaid. I bring Medicaid up because I feel like we are taking a few good steps forward in this opioid crisis, but we are missing the big picture when we have to defend Medicaid over and over again. Up to 45 percent of opioid-addicted patients rely on Medicaid to get their opioid rehab or misuse treatments to get back on steady footing.…”