Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Keating) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Rothfus) for offering this amendment, and I support it. According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, more Americans are now dying every year from drug overdoses than in car accidents, and a majority of those overdoses involve prescription medications. In 2012, healthcare providers wrote 259 million prescriptions for opioid pain medications, enough for every American adult to have a bottle of pills. In 2010, the House Committee on the Judiciary and Committee on Energy and Commerce shepherded through Congress the Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act, which amended the Controlled Substances Act to allow patients to legally return unused or expired prescription drugs to local pharmacies, police stations, and community drug disposal programs. That same year, the Drug Enforcement Administration began hosting National Prescription Drug Take-Back events. At the previous 10 take- back day events, over 5.5 million pounds of unwanted, unneeded, or expired medications were surrendered for safe and proper disposal. On April 27, I was pleased to host, along with Committee on Appropriations Chairman Rogers, a drug take-back event here on Capitol Hill. At this year's National Take-Back Day, held on April 30, Americans disposed of more unused prescription drugs than during any of the previous 10 events.…”