Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from New Jersey for yielding, and I rise in strong support of H.R. 5329, the Poison Center Network Enhancement Act. I remember when I was a little boy, my mother used to have a poison control number that she taped to the medicine chest so that, if there was ever a tragedy or a problem, we could call the number quickly. This is obviously along those same lines. That is why it is so important for the American people to have this. I want to thank Congresswoman Susan Brooks. I coauthored the bill with her. I want to thank her for her hard work. It reauthorizes, for an additional 5 years, as the gentlewoman just said, the nationwide network of poison control centers, which are playing a critical role in the fight to end the opioid crisis. Our country's 55 poison centers are staffed by trained toxicologists, pharmacists, physicians, and nurses who are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, to provide real-time, lifesaving assistance via a national toll-free number, which is 1-800-222-1222. In 2016, someone in this country called the poison center roughly every 12 seconds. So it shows you that it is being utilized and it saves lives. More than 90 percent of those calls were due to a poison exposure in someone's home. More than half of all cases involved children under the age of 12. That is why speedy access to poison centers is such an invaluable resource and so important, especially for parents.…”