Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, one of the best ways we can fight the opioid crisis is by decreasing diversion of prescription drugs. This bill does just that, giving hospice employees new tools to dispose of unused medications on-site after a patient's death. During the committee process, several thoughtful amendments were offered to perfect this language. For example, one clarified that the training will be conducted by the hospice program, not the Federal Government. Another added a recordkeeping standard for hospice programs to maintain information within patients' clinical charts of the controlled substance dosage, number of pills, and the way it is disposed of. And finally, a technical amendment incorporated comments from the DEA. Of note, there is one final technical correction incorporated into the suspension document, which clarifies that hospice employees may handle these unused controlled substances. This specification, obviously, improves the bill. In closing, Michigan Representative Tim Walberg and Representative Debbie Dingell should be commended for, once again, their bipartisan and thoughtful work on this legislation. They worked tirelessly to forge an inclusive process, incorporating input from people in Michigan, hospice groups across the country, the agencies who will oversee this program, and others. Even more, their staff showed real initiative and reason as we put this together. Mr.…”