Political Quotes

“I thank Congressman Gene Green for yielding me time and for working with me to find better treatment for babies born with neonatal abstinence syndrome, also known as NAS. Mr. Speaker, every 25 minutes, as we have heard, every 25 minutes in America, another baby is born addicted to heroin or other deadly opioids. It results from their mother's struggle with addiction. As the heroin epidemic sweeps our towns and our cities throughout the United States and impacts far too many families, many of the most overlooked victims have been the most vulnerable among us. It is heart- wrenching and it is terrible that an innocent newborn, trembling, crying uncontrollably, clenching her small fists, and gasping for air, again, is born every 25 minutes. These are just a few of the symptoms babies face when they are born addicted to opioids, and nothing from my perspective as a mother and as a grandmother could be more demanding of our immediate attention. That is why I joined Congressman Evan Jenkins from West Virginia to introduce the Nurturing and Supporting Healthy Babies Act. This bipartisan legislation will improve care for babies born with neonatal abstinence syndrome. It will expand our knowledge of care for NAS babies, including its prevalence in the United States. It will also examine access to care for NAS babies under the State Medicaid programs and direct the Government Accountability Office to identify any Federal obstacles to care for NAS babies.…”