Political Quotes

“Congress is taking a critical first step to combat our country's opioid crisis and a major step in providing safer, more effective, and higher quality care for America's veterans. I want to speak about my bipartisan Jason Simcakoski Memorial Opioid Safety Act, which is included in the final version of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, known as CARA. This bipartisan legislation reforms opioid prescribing and pain care at the VA. These bipartisan reforms to veterans health care that I authored, along with my colleague Senator Shelley Moore Capito, should unite us all. They represent our responsibility to honor and care for those who have served and sacrificed for our Nation, and their families--and all our families. This bipartisan legislation is named in honor of Wisconsin Marine Veteran Jason Simcakoski. On August 30, 2014, Jason tragically died. He died in Wisconsin's Tomah Veterans Affairs Medical Center of mixed-drug toxicity. At the time of his death, Jason was on 14 different prescription drugs, including opioids. Jason's heartbreaking story is just one example of the overprescribing and pain care problem within the VA in Wisconsin and across the country. I believe the VA's overreliance on opioids has resulted in getting our veterans hooked rather than getting them the help they need, and it is our job to act now to address this epidemic.…”