On the recordJuly 12, 2016
the Senate will soon vote on the conference report for the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act. The importance of this bill cannot be overstated. People are dying, families are suffering, communities are being torn apart. We can help, but we must do so now. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this legislation, which passed in the House last week with only five votes in opposition. The bill is intended to address the growing national crisis with regard to opioid abuse and addiction. The staggering statistics surrounding this issue are well known and are worth repeating. Every day, approximately 7,000 people show up in an emergency room for problems associated with opioid abuse. Every 30 minutes, on average, someone in our country dies from conditions that are opioid related. My home State of Utah has been particularly hard hit. In 2014, 289 Utahans died due to opioid abuse. That is more than half of all drug overdose related deaths in the State. The CARA conference report represents a thoughtful set of policies that tackle the problems experienced by the real people--with families, children, and friends-- who are represented by these statistics. A letter signed by over 200 advocacy organizations supporting the conference report states that the report addresses the ``six pillars'' of a comprehensive response to drug addiction crises.…
