Maine and Ohio lawmakers urge Congress to fund opioid treatment

WASHINGTON (Gray DC) -- Maine Congressman Bruce Poliquin knows the effects of addiction all too well.

"He would be with us today if he were able to solve this problem," Poliquin (R-ME-2) said.

Poliquin lost his brother to drug and alcohol abuse after a decades-long struggle. Now, Poliquin is asking House leadership for help so other families can get treatment before it’s too late.

“We need to make sure we have the funding necessary to take care of those in need," Poliquin added.

This past summer, Congress passed the ‘Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act’, which would create new data collection methods, research and continuing treatment programs. One thing it didn’t do was provide funding. Poliquin and 37 other House members want it now.

"More people than were killed in World War Two have been killed, we’ve lost in the last 15 years," Ohio Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-OH-9) added.

Kaptur is one of those 38 asking for treatment funding to be included in a short-term budget deal Congress is working on right now.

“We see this damage in every neighborhood, every community, every emergency room, every hospital, our jails are full of people, it’s really quite daunting," she said.

If the opioid funding doesn’t get into the appropriations bill by September 30th, lawmakers will need to find another way.

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