In the News
Congressman Bucshon Favors Investigation Of Drug Companies Over Opioid Crisis
Washington,
October 26, 2017
Tags:
Healthcare
"Congress is concerned about it and I think it does warrant an investigation. [We want to] get the facts and see what is known about the addictive nature of these medications," says Rep. Bucshon, who is also a medical doctor.
WASHINGTON, DC -- Indiana's 8th District Congressman Larry Bucshon (R) says he is in favor of a Congressional investigation into drug manufacturers and distributors to uncover what information those companies may have had about the addictive nature of prescription medicines involving opioids. In an interview with 93 WIBC’s Abdul Hakim-Shabazz, Rep. Bucshon says he would like to know what those companies may have known about opioids and if they could have done anything to prevent those who have been prescribed those medications from becoming addicts to other similar drugs, such as heroin. "Congress is concerned about it and I think it does warrant an investigation. [We want to] get the facts and see what is known about the addictive nature of these medications," says Rep. Bucshon, who is also a medical doctor. Congressman Bucshon says one of his main concerns with opioids is the death toll it is taking across the country. "More people are dying from the opioid crisis than from violence and accidents combined," according to Rep. Bucshon. The American Association of Addictive Medicine says more than 52,000 died of accidental opioid overdoses in 2015. "This is a crisis that affects all socio-economic classes. It [also] crosses racial lines [and] age lines. This is really a broad-based problem that we are seeing in our country," says Congressman Bucshon, who says there is a shortage of doctors, nurses and counselors who are available to closely monitor those who are prescribed opioid medication to manage pain. |
