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ICYMI: Guthrie is Leading From the Forefront of the Fight Against the Overdose Epidemic
Washington, D.C. ,
January 24, 2024
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DJ Griffin
(202-225-3501)
Tags:
Health Care
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), who serves as Chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Health, published an op-ed in the Washington Examiner on what Congress is doing to help those across the nation battling substance-use disorder, which has been made worse thanks to Joe Biden’s disastrous border policies. Below are the highlights of the op-ed published this morning by the Washington Examiner. Click HERE to read the full op-ed.  In 2018, Congress took the important step of passing the landmark SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act, comprehensive legislation aimed at reversing high rates of drug overdose deaths. At the same time, the Trump administration acted aggressively to cut off the supply of illicit fentanyl in our communities by temporarily scheduling fentanyl analogues as a Schedule I controlled substances. By all measures, this all-the-above approach was working. Between January 2018 and 2019, drug overdose rates declined, and we only experienced a small increase in drug overdose rates between January 2019 and 2020. But then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and lockdowns suddenly left millions of Americans trapped inside their homes and without the critical support systems needed to help people cope with substance use disorder. Making matters worse was President Joe Biden’s decision to undue former President Trump’s border policies, including Remain in Mexico and Title 42. Due to the Biden administration’s open border policies, every state has become a border state with illicit drugs flowing into our communities at unprecedented rates. … We undoubtedly have our work cut out for us, but I am hopeful that we can reverse these trends because of the hard work House Republicans are doing to address the crisis at the southern border. Under my leadership, the House GOP recently voted to permanently schedule fentanyl-related substances as Schedule I drugs and reauthorize the SUPPORT Act. … Click HERE to read the full op-ed.
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