Erik Paulsen: “We know the opioid epidemic has, unfortunately, been tearing apart communities all across our entire country. I want to…”

“We know the opioid epidemic has, unfortunately, been tearing apart communities all across our entire country. I want to share a story in particular that is similar to the heartbreak and heartache we have heard from others today. Keegan: Keegan Duffy was 30 years old when he died in January of last year after an accidental overdose. He had just received his master's degree, had a promising career in computer science, was an avid outdoorsman, and volunteered a lot of his time to helping the poor. His addiction started like so many others. He was prescribed 120 pills after suffering chronic back pain. After that first pill, unfortunately, he was hooked. Despite almost a dozen attempts to break free of his addiction in rehabilitation, he could never really quite do it. Ultimately, he died of an overdose that came from fentanyl, a synthetic drug made in Asia, bought online, and smuggled into the United States. Keegan's story was told to me personally by his mother. It was heartbreaking. Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a very loving tribute to Keegan written by his mother and father, Dave and Jean Duffy. Statement of Jean and Dave Duffy, Father of Keegan, June 14, 2018 Keegan was 30 years old when he passed away Jan 3, 2017 of an accidental overdose of opioids. At the time of his death, he was working as a successful computer professional, having just graduated from Arizona State William Carey School of Business with a Masters degree in Information Systems.…”