Annie Kuster: “This is the final amendment to the bill, which will not kill the bill or send it back to committee. If adopted, the bill…”

“This is the final amendment to the bill, which will not kill the bill or send it back to committee. If adopted, the bill will immediately proceed to final passage as amended. Like so many communities and States across this country, New Hampshire has been devastated by the heroin and opioid epidemic. Last year alone, my State lost 500 people to substance use disorder. Helping families, first responders, treatment providers, law enforcement officials, and family advocates in the Granite State confront this crisis has been my number one priority in Congress. In 2015, Mr. Guinta and I founded the Bipartisan Congressional Heroin Task Force to raise awareness of this crisis and to advocate in a collaborative way for solutions at the Federal level. I am proud to report that our bipartisan task force is now 90 members strong, and we have made important progress in passing legislation and securing critical funding. But the causes of this crisis are complex, requiring a multifaceted approach addressing every angle of the epidemic, from treatment to recovery, from education and prevention to law enforcement and interdiction. A primary cause of opioid misuse resulting in heroin dependence is the overprescribing of opioid pain medication. The data is astonishing.…”