U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin Joins Coalition Urging Leader McConnell and Speaker Ryan to Focus on Funding for Opioid Crisis and Medical Research in Government Spending Bill
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin joined Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and a group of 17 other Senators in calling on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan to include a substantial increase in funds for the fight against the nation’s opioid epidemic and additional investments in the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as part of the Continuing Resolution currently being negotiated in Congress to avert a government shutdown. The letter was signed by Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Tom Udall (D-NM), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Al Franken (D-MN), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH).
“While past Congresses have made promises about providing states with additional funding to address the ongoing opioid crisis, appropriations legislation like the pending budget deal is where the bill comes due. Americans are counting on Congress to live up to its commitments by supporting funding for the priorities that matter most in their lives,”wrote the Senators. “Funding to fight the opioid epidemic and support research into lifesaving cures through the NIH rank at the top of this list, and we urge you to include substantial additional funding for these areas in the appropriations legislation now being negotiated.”
The Senators asked for additional resources to address the nation’s opioid crisis, particularly those communities which have been hit hardest by the epidemic, noting that only ten percent of people with substance abuse disorder receive specialty treatment due in large part to lack of funding for services.
The Senators also called for increased investment in the NIH to support continued biomedical research, citing the institute’s critical role in discovering cures for life-threatening diseases and its numerous, valuable contributions to science.
Full text of the letter is available below.
April 26, 2017
The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Majority Leader
U.S. Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510
The Honorable Paul Ryan
Speaker
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Leader McConnell and Speaker Ryan,
As negotiations over the latest stopgap government funding measure continue, we urge you to focus on securing substantial funding in the appropriations legislation currently being negotiated for two of our most essential national priorities: fighting the opioid epidemic and investing in our nation’s biomedical research programs.
Every day, 91 Americans die from an opioid overdose, and despite the tireless work of many in our communities, this public health epidemic is only getting worse. Currently, only 10 percent of individuals who need specialty treatment for substance use disorder actually get it – not because we don’t know how to help, but in large part because there aren’t enough funds to provide these services. We need substantial additional resources to fight this epidemic and fund prevention, treatment, and recovery activities.
It is essential to provide new funding to fight the opioid epidemic and support biomedical research at the NIH. This new funding should not fill in for cuts made elsewhere to opioid and NIH funding.
It is also essential that opioid funding be distributed to the communities that need it most and that have been hardest hit by this terrible public health epidemic.
While past Congresses have made promises about providing states with additional funding to address the ongoing opioid crisis, appropriations legislation like the pending budget deal is where the bill comes due. Americans are counting on Congress to live up to its commitments by supporting funding for the priorities that matter most in their lives. Funding to fight the opioid epidemic and support research into lifesaving cures through the NIH rank at the top of this list, and we urge you to include substantial additional funding for these areas in the appropriations legislation now being negotiated.
Sincerely,
An online version of this release is available here.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
More about the Opioid Crisis
- Baldwin Brings Home $750,000 for Northeastern Wisconsin to Combat Fentanyl and Opioid Epidemic - U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin - Sep 27th, 2024
- AG Kaul Meets with EMS Leave Behind Program Recipients - Wisconsin Department of Justice - Sep 17th, 2024
- MKE County: Crowley Signs Opioid Program Funding - Graham Kilmer - Sep 10th, 2024
- Serenity Inns Opens New Addiction Treatment Center in Milwaukee - Serenity Inns - Aug 14th, 2024
- MKE County: County Nearly Doubles Narcan Vending Machines - Graham Kilmer - Aug 12th, 2024
- Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley Announces Placement of Eight Additional Harm Reduction Vending Machines - County Executive David Crowley - Aug 12th, 2024
- Milwaukee’s Native Community Faces Surge in Opioid Deaths - Trisha Young - Jul 8th, 2024
- MKE County: County Awards $2.8 Million To Non-Profit Opioid Programs - Graham Kilmer - Jul 2nd, 2024
- MKE County: County To Get $3 Million From Kroger In Opioid Settlement - Graham Kilmer - Jul 1st, 2024
- Court Decision Holds Up Wisconsin’s $70 Million Drug Settlement - Sarah Lehr - Jul 1st, 2024
Read more about Opioid Crisis here
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