Opioid Crisis
WASHINGTON, DC - The opioid crisis touches every community in the United States, including my district in Illinois. To stop it, we need multifaceted solutions. The report's broad and inclusive recommendations provide a good blueprint for action.
WASHINGTON, DC - I applaud President Trump's decision to declare what too many communities in Illinois and across American already know – the opioid crisis is a public health emergency.
Each day, more than 90 Americans die from heroin and opioid overdoses. In my home state of Illinois, there were 1,835 overdose deaths in 2015 — a 16 percent increase in just two years. New synthetic versions of heroin like fentanyl and carfentanil are exacerbating the crisis. Overdose deaths from these drugs increased by over 70 percent from 2014 to 2015.
JOLIET – It's time we stop naming substance users as addicts, Will County Director of Substance Use Initiatives Dr. Kathleen Burke said.
"I want to ask everyone today to stop using the word ‘addict' because it's derogatory and it stigmatizes," Burke said Wednesday. "People have a medical disease. It's a substance use disorder. ‘Substance users' is what I try to say."
Washington, DC – On Tuesday, Congressman Bill Foster (D-IL) led a letter to President Trump with Rep. Evan Jenkins (R-WV), Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH), and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), urging him to implement the recommendations of the President's Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis. It was signed by 52 Members of Congress.
WASHINGTON, DC – Yesterday, Congressman Bill Foster (D-IL) spoke on the U.S. House floor in support of an amendment that would provide $2.5 million to the Office of Technology Assessment. The amendment was offered as a part of H.R. 3219, FY2018 Appropriations Bill.
Washington, DC – Today, Congressman Bill Foster (D-IL) reintroduced the Medicaid CARE Act along with Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Congressman Tim Ryan (D-OH), and Congressman Evan Jenkins (R-WV). This bill would provide medical assistance for treatment of opioid and heroin addiction. It would allow payments for certain residential treatment facilities.
Rep. Bill Foster stood before 17 graduates of the Kane County Drug Rehabilitation Court and congratulated them for not letting addiction define their lives.
Washington, DC - This budget eliminates critical funding for science, education, and programs that keep Americans safe and healthy. It is hard to overstate how much damage this budget will do to our ability to remain at the forefront of innovation and problem solving.
Heroin use continues to be a problem in the Aurora area, with some officials saying a change in attitude is needed to make headway against the drug.
A group of local law enforcement officials and drug enforcement groups, led by U.S. Rep. Bill Foster (D-Naperville), met at Aurora's Eola Branch Library Wednesday to discuss the fight against heroin and opioid addiction.