In 2014 there were more than a thousand drug overdose deaths in the state of Kentucky, a statistic that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell calls “devastating.”
McConnell took the Senate Floor Thursday and said the fight against drug trafficking and drug abuse in the Appalachian region of the state is making a difference, but more needs to be done to stop the opioid epidemic in Kentucky and across the country. He called for bipartisan support for pieces of legislation that he says will tackle the problem. “In the coming days we’ll be working to move that important bipartisan bill forward. It has garnered a great deal of support from both sides of the isle because of its provisions to expand prevention and educational efforts, strengthen prescription drug monitoring programs, improve treatment programs and give law enforcement the tools it needs to address this awful epidemic.”
McConnell also introduced the Protecting Families Affected by Substance Abuse Act which would reauthorize grants to help children in foster care, or at risk of being placed there because of their parents’ drug habits.