[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 66 (Friday, April 16, 2021)]
[House]
[Page H1879]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       AMERICA'S OPIOID EPIDEMIC

  (Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York asked and was given permission 
to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her 
remarks.)
  Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, I rise to speak 
on a commonsense bill I introduced to promote accountability for 
America's opioid crisis. The opioid epidemic has taken almost as many 
lives as the COVID-19 crisis.
  The Sackler family has amassed billions of dollars, in large part, 
through the sales of Purdue Pharma's OxyContin. Members of the Sackler 
family have been directly involved in the company's efforts to flood 
our communities with this dangerous painkiller and to mislead the 
public on the danger it poses to their health. Purdue has declared 
bankruptcy, and members of the Sackler family are seeking legal 
releases from individual lawsuits brought against them by government 
entities.
  My bill, H.R. 2096, the SACKLER Act, ensures that individuals accused 
of wrongdoing by government actors, like the Sacklers, are prevented 
from evading responsibility through bankruptcy proceedings.
  I ask my colleagues for their support in this crucial effort to 
ensure accountability for the harm the Sacklers have inflicted on our 
communities, and to promote justice for lives lost to the opioid 
epidemic.

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