Political Quotes

“the world we are living in today is a very different one than we envisioned when we rang in the new year in the beginning of 2020 or even when we celebrated St. Patrick's Day in March. COVID has altered almost every aspect of our lives, from where we gather to celebrate or mourn to how our children are educated. Far too many across the country have lost loved ones to this disease, or they are living with health complications because of it. However, while we are rightly focusing much of our energy on the coronavirus, this is not the only health crisis we are battling. Unfortunately, across the Nation, drug overdose deaths are rising amidst the coronavirus, negating much of the progress we have made over the last several years. A White House Office of National Drug Control Policy analysis shows an 11.4-percent increase in fatalities for the first 4 months of 2020. My home State of West Virginia reported 923 overdose-related EMS calls in May, which is roughly a 50-percent jump from May of 2019. Our neighboring State of Kentucky--and I am sure the neighboring State of Ohio too--has estimated a 25-percent increase in overdose deaths between January and March. Is COVID-19 directly causing these overdose deaths? No. Is the pandemic exacerbating our Nation's addiction struggle? Absolutely. It is not hard to see why.…”