Confronting Heroin and Opioid Abuse Crisis

Floor Speech

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Mr. ZELDIN. Mr. Speaker, the rapid rise in drug abuse across America, specifically the sharp increase in heroin and prescription opioid abuse, has severely impacted our local communities and has become a major issue across our country.

Tragically, 78 people each day will lose their battle with addiction and their life as a result of an opioid or heroin overdose. Sadly, with the trends moving the way they are, this number will only continue to increase. According to the CDC, in 2014, over 28,000 people lost their lives due to prescription opioid pain relievers or heroin. This was the highest recorded number of overdose deaths of any year. Newsday on Long Island just reported an increase in overdose deaths in our region, stating that 442 people died of a heroin or opiate overdose in 2014, a number that has increased from 403 overdose deaths the prior year.

Addiction is a devastating disease that takes hold of our loved ones and impacts everyone around that person. This is a lonely and heartbreaking disease that is taking lives, tearing families apart, and destroying our communities. It must be stopped.

In a report that highlights the growing drug abuse epidemic sweeping across our Nation, the CDC found that over the past decade, heroin use has doubled among young adults ages 18 to 25, and heroin-related overdose deaths have nearly quadrupled, with every 6 out of 10 drug overdoses linked to opioids or heroin. The CDC also found that almost half of the people who use heroin are also struggling with a prescription opioid addiction. As drug abuse continues to rise, claiming lives and grabbing hold of our youth, it is clear that we must come together to address this crisis.

Throughout my time in the New York State Senate, and now in the United States Congress, one of my top priorities has been to support legislation to help those coping with drug addiction by increasing treatment and recovery services.

One piece of legislation I am proud to support and cosponsor is H.R. 953, the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, also known as CARA. CARA would prevent and treat addiction on a local level through community-based education, prevention, treatment, and recovery services. The grants made available through this bill would also provide the necessary funding to expand prescription drug monitoring in States all throughout our country.

Additionally, CARA provides funding to supply our police force and emergency medical responders with higher quantities of Naloxone, a medication that is proven to reverse an opioid overdose. Since this bill was introduced at the beginning of last year, I have been pushing for a vote on CARA in the House. Just last month, the United States Senate passed this bill with an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 94-1. Now it is time to bring this bill to the House floor.

As a member of the Bipartisan Task Force to Combat the Heroin Epidemic, passage in the House of CARA is a top priority of mine, and I will keep fighting so that we can pass this essential piece of legislation and send it to the President's desk for his signature.

There are many other bills, other than CARA, such as the Stop Overdose Stat Act, H.R. 2850. There are bills like the Examining Opioid Treatment Infrastructure Act of 2016, which would require the Comptroller General to issue a report to Congress on substance abuse treatment availability and infrastructure needs across the country, as well as legislation that would task the FDA to create a plan on how to deal with the opioid and heroin epidemic, H.R. 4976.

Fighting drug abuse must be an effort at all levels of government, but it also must be a community effort as well. That is why I have hosted press conferences and panel discussions, including a community summit and drug task force roundtable on Long Island to bring together local elected officials, law enforcement, health professionals, community groups, parents, concerned residents, and recovering substance abusers so that we can all develop and pursue necessary solutions.

The House is also expected to take up legislation to stop the flow of illegal substances into our country, such as H.R. 3380, which would help law enforcement officials identify and target drug traffickers; and H.R. 4985, which makes it easier to prosecute drug traffickers.

We must all continue to support legislation that addresses the rise in heroin and opioid abuse to stop this tragic loss of life, family, and community as a result of addiction. It is impacting our districts all across America. It is our duty while we are here, as Members of Congress, to do everything in our power to address this now, to turn the tide, to fight back, and to save families that are being torn apart. That is why I support all of these great bills that are moving through the process here in the House.

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