Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman for yielding so much time to me in favor of this legislation that I coauthored with my colleague, Ms. DelBene, on this bipartisan piece, H.R. 5723, the Expanding Oversight of Opioid Prescribing and Payment Act of 2018. Mr. Speaker, in my district and across the Nation, the opioid epidemic has ravaged communities, torn apart families, and ended the lives of everyday Americans. Opioid abuse and drug-related deaths are rising at alarming rates. In my rural New York district, drug-related deaths rose over 350 percent in the short period from 2012 to 2016. Each day, I continue to hear from families across the 22nd district that have been impacted by this epidemic. They share deeply moving and personal stories of loss and struggle, and they always urge me that more needs to be done. Mr. Speaker, they are right. This is why the people's House has taken significant, bipartisan action to pass record funding for addiction treatment and prevention and to stop the flow of illicit drugs coming across the border. This is not the time to let up. During an opioid roundtable that I held in my district, I heard from members of my community who told me that often an opioid prescription is the only option for pain management offered after a complicated surgery or a procedure as routine as a root canal. This anecdotal evidence is backed up by the hard truth that, in 2016, there were 66.5 opioid prescriptions per 100 people. Mr.…”