[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 98 (Wednesday, June 13, 2018)]
[House]
[Page H5105]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        AMERICA'S OPIOID CRISIS

  (Mr. ALLEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. ALLEN. Mr. Speaker, in America today, in every State, in too many 
families, there is a profound sense of pain, loss, and suffering caused 
by the horrendous opioid crisis.
  Unfortunately, my home State of Georgia is not immune to this growing 
epidemic. Many of my closest friends have lost family members or 
children, and the question is always: Why? How can this happen?
  From 1999 to 2014, prescription opioid deaths increased tenfold in 
Georgia. We saw over 500 deaths in 2015 as a result of opioid abuse.
  Over the next few weeks, my colleagues and I in the House of 
Representatives are bringing opioid addiction out of the shadows and 
voting on over 50 pieces of legislation to prevent further opioid abuse 
and assist those currently dealing with addiction. We must take 
proactive steps to fight opioid addiction and focus on treating the 
mind, the body, and, most important in my view, the spirit.
  The road to recovery may be long and hard-fought, but the American 
will is as strong as ever and shall prevail. We are at war with drugs, 
and we must defeat this enemy.
  I urge all my colleagues to join me in supporting the nearly 40 
opioid-related bills before this House this week. America needs us.

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