Rob Portman: “I am here on the floor today to talk about the need for all of us to redouble our efforts to combat drug addiction. One…”

“I am here on the floor today to talk about the need for all of us to redouble our efforts to combat drug addiction. One of the top priorities I have had in my time in public service has been to combat this crisis, which has devastated so many families, destroyed so many communities, and impacted us in so many negative ways. Unfortunately, under the cover of the coronavirus pandemic, there is an epidemic that is growing, and that is the drug addiction epidemic. It is heartbreaking because we actually had several years of progress. We were making progress, finally, in turning the tide, and now, it is coming back with a vengeance to the point that overdoses and overdose deaths, hospitalizations, and all the other negative consequences of drug addiction is being raised up again in the context of the coronavirus. Here, in the Congress, we have taken a leadership role on addressing this issue. Over the last several years, Congress has appropriated billions of dollars--and not that money solves everything, but the money has been pretty well spent on programs that are actually tested, evidence-based programs on prevention, on treatment, and longer term recovery. Once called the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, which I authored with my colleague, Sheldon Whitehouse, on the other side of the aisle, there is other legislation, too, called the 21st Century Cures Act.…”