Opioid Epidemic is Public Health Crisis

Floor Speech

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Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, on Sunday, I had the privilege of being in Kane, Pennsylvania, McKean County, Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District, for a film screening and a panel discussion about opioid addiction.

The 11-minute film is called ``Eye of the Needle,'' and it chronicles opioid addiction in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was produced in 2017 for the Light of Life Rescue Mission's annual gala.

Light of Life is a homeless shelter in Pittsburgh whose clients are homeless, primarily due to addiction and mental health issues. Light of Life provides a home for the homeless; food for the hungry; and care for the poor, the addicted, the abused, and the elderly.

Like so many shelters in America, the opioid epidemic has greatly impacted them. They have been using this film as an educational tool. It has been screened at Carnegie Mellon University, Duquesne University, Point Park University, and Robert Morris University.

On Sunday, it was the first time the film was shown in a community setting. About 100 people gathered in the Kane Area Community Center for the viewing, which also featured a panel discussion.

I proudly participated on the panel, which featured several speakers from the community, including representatives from law enforcement and alcohol and drug abuse services.

Mr. Speaker, I know there isn't a ZIP Code in the country that isn't impacted by the opioid epidemic. We have seen the crippling effects of this epidemic, and we need to act with unified urgency to help those who are suffering.

It is considered by many to be the worst public health crisis of this generation. Overcoming it will not only take a community-wide effort, but a nationwide effort.

Through treatment and recovery, through prevention, by protecting our communities, and by fighting fentanyl and other ever-changing synthetic or foreign illicit drugs, we will overcome this epidemic.

Heroin and pain pill addiction does not discriminate on age, race, gender, or socioeconomic status. Your neighbor could be using heroin, and so could their high-honors high school student.

Unfortunately, the people of Pennsylvania have seen some of the worst. In 2017, the crisis surged when the Commonwealth experienced a 44 percent increase in opioid overdoses.

Addressing this unprecedented rate of opioid-related deaths means that we must focus on nearly 2.2 million Americans who currently struggle with opioid addiction.

In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, we are on the front line. Through community conversations, like the one that took place in Kane this Sunday, we can continue the conversation on how to end this epidemic.

Congress has engaged many agencies, including the Department of Justice, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control, and Customs and Border Protection, just to name a few, to help combat opioid abuse.

This crisis has taken lives, torn apart families, weakened our workforce, and overextended our healthcare system.

Mr. Speaker, this is a modern-day plague and the public health crisis of our lifetime. We need to talk about it. We need to take action. And we need to find solutions.

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