Upton Testifies About Opioid Epidemic

upton
upton

Congressman Fred Upton is urging legislative leaders to do more to fight the nation’s opioid epidemic. He testified before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday as it held a proceeding for members to talk about the issue, share local and personal stories, and highlight solutions.

“This silent epidemic has for sure torn through families, neighborhoods, and communities both in my home statge of Michigan, but we know across the country as well,” Upton said. “In fact, we know in 2015, there were nearly 2,000 opioid-related deaths in Michigan alone.”

Upton said his 21st Century Cures legislation allowed for $1 billion to be allocated to the states to fight the problem, with the first grants going out this year. He added more needs to be done to help the National Institutes of Health address the issue. Upton said the NIH should develop more overdose treatments, along with non-addictive pain medicines.

You can watch Upton’s full comments below.