A Growing Epidemic
Congressman COOK Votes
to Take Action
Washington D.C. ____ Representative
Paul Cook (R-Apple Valley) joined his colleagues in the House in voting for a
number of Bills aimed at fighting the growing opioid epidemic. According to the
U.S. Department of Health and Humans Services, in 2016 more than 42,000 people died from
opioid overdose and an estimated 2.1 million people suffered from an opioid use
disorder.
Today, June 14, 2018, Representative
Cook voted for House of Representatives #5788, the Synthetics Trafficking and
Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act of 2018. This legislation protects Americans
by stopping the flow of synthetic opioids in the international mail system.
Synthetic opioids like fentanyl enter the United States through multiple
avenues, including ports of entry, express delivery services, and international
mail. This legislation strengthens
oversight on international shipments, enabling the U.S. Customs and Border
Patrol to better target high-risk shipments for inspection and seizure. HR
5788 passed the House overwhelmingly.
Also, Representative Cook voted
earlier this week for a number of additional measures targeting the opioid
epidemic, including House of Representatives #5009, Jessie’s Law. After being
sexually assaulted, a Michigan college student named Jessie looked to heroin to
try to escape the trauma. Jessie battled addiction for nearly seven years,
going in and out of rehab four times. Following her time at a Michigan
treatment facility, Jessie was turning her life around and had been clean for
six months.
Later she developed a
running-related infection in her hip that required surgery. Her parents
informed the hospital that she was a recovering addict and should not be
prescribed opioids, but that message never made it to the discharging
physician. Without knowing her addiction history, the doctor prescribed 50
oxycodone pills and she fatally overdosed the next day.
House of
Representatives #5009 ensures medical professionals have access to a consenting
patient’s complete health information when making treatment decisions by
requiring the Department of Health and Human Services to develop and annually
disseminate best practices regarding the prominent display of substance use
disorder history in records of patients who have previously provided this
information to a health care provider. HR #5009 passed the House unanimously.
Representative Paul Cook said, “This
week Congress passed more than 25 bills specifically targeting the opioid
crisis. With more than 115 people dying every day as a result of opioid abuse and
overdose, we need to take action now. There’s still work to be done, but we’re
making progress on fighting this epidemic that’s causing so much death and
suffering.”