Transcripts For CSPAN Drug Policy Experts Testify On Fentany

Charter communications supports cspan as a Public Service along with these other Television Providers giving ua frontrow giving you a frontrow seat to democracy. Next, executive Branch Officials testify about the continuing rise of Overdose Deaths linked to fentanyl. Questions on combating the illicit drug trade, raising youth awareness about opioids and the disproportionate impact on underserved populations. This synod House Committee hearing is two hours. Senate House Committee hearing two hours. Good morning, so that health education, labor, and health will please come to order. Today we are having a hearing on the fentanyl crisis that is decimating our communities. I will have an Opening Statement followed by senator cassidy, and then we will introduce our witnesses. After they gave their testimony, senators will each have five minutes for a round of questions. Again, while we are unable to have this hearing fully open to the public, live video is available on the Senate Health committee. If you need of accommodations please reach out to the committee at the office of congressional accessibility services. Last week in Washington State, county declared fentanyl a Public Health crisis, and it is painfully obvious why. This year, king county alone has lost over 270 people to fentanyl overdoses that is in increase of nearly 50 from last year. That is more than one fentanyl death every day, and that is just one county in my state, one corner of our country that lost over 100,000 people to Drug Overdoses last year. That is an alltime high. That number does not just represent a grim record, it represents so many personal tragedies, so many strapped families that are shattered by the loss of a loved one, parents, caregivers, and, increasingly, teenagers. There is no question we had a Mental Health and Substance Use disorder crisis on our hands before the covid pandemic. But, there is also no doubt there things have gotten so much worse due to the trauma of the pandemic. So much more deadly with the sharp rise of illicit fentanyl in recent years. That is because fentanyl is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. Two milligrams can be a lethal dose. From april 2020 to 2021 synthetic open awe its mostly illicit fentanyl were responsible for nearly two thirds of all over the stats. And, the recent rise in fentanyl Overdose Deaths has also reflected the painful, Systemic Health inequities we still need to do so much to address. Black communities, as well as American Indian and alaska native communities have suffered a higher increase in Overdose Deaths than other demographics. There has also been a deeply alarming rise in young people dying from overdoses. In 2019 over 250 teens died from illicit fentanyl. Last year we lost almost 900. Think about that, fentanyl deaths for teenagers more than tripled in two years. My heart goes out to every family touched by this crisis, i have heard from many of them. People who lost a loved one after a long, hard struggle with addiction. And, those who lost a loved one suddenly to a counterfeit bill leased with illegal dose of fentanyl. Our communities are doing everything they can to fight this, but they need help from the federal government to stop these dangerous drugs at the source. Cut off supply lines, and, importantly, get these kids and their families the help they need. The way we do that is to support families on the ground through robust Public Health efforts, and better access to Mental Health and Substance Use disorder care. When it comes to cutting off the supply of fentanyl, fda has been working to cut down on counterfeit drugs being sold online. Something i want to see them continue to make progress on to protect our youth. The dea is working to seize fentanyl laced pills before they can end up in our kids hands. I have been pressing President Biden on this, the same way i press the trump administration. We are seizing more fentanyl laced pills than ever before and i appreciate the hard work that is going into that. Our Law Enforcement and First Responders on the ground are really working to rise to this challenge. To stop these deadly pills and save lives, and ensure people can get the care they need. When i talked to police officers, fire chiefs, First Responders back in Washington State, it is clearly have a lot more to do to build on the progress we are making. To cut off the supply lines that produce these dangerous drugs, and prevent them from ever reaching our communities. Drug trafficking is a serious problem and that is why democrats continue to work with republicans to provide significant funding for Border Security and drug interdiction. Lets get one thing clear, we need to be taking this seriously. And having real conversations about how we address the National Threat of fentanyl use and supply, not playing politics, not scapegoating, not fearmongering, not attacking refugees and immigrants with proposals that are based more on xenophobia than on what will actually work to keep people safe. That is not to say we cannot talk about accountability, especially for opioid manufacturers who feel this crisis to line their pockets. There are enormous corporations that theyll just how dangerous and addictive these products were, and yet decided to ignore the risk for patients, market these pills aggressively, and flood our communities with opioids. We absolutely must hold these Companies Accountable for padding their profits at the expense of countless lives. Of course, stopping the supply of illicit fentanyl and holding Companies Accountable which field the Opioid Crisis is critical. But, we really have to tackle this challenge from every angle possible, with that in mind we have a lot more work to do to help our communities get people the Mental Health and Substance Use disorder care they need. Right now less than 10 of people who need Substance Use Disorder Treatment can get it, that is even harder if you are black, hispanic, American Indian, or alaska native. The painful reality is that most people who died by overdose did not get any Substance Use Disorder Treatment before they passed away. That is unacceptable, we need to do better. A big part of the problem is our Mental Health and Substance Use disorder workforce, it has been woefully overstretched and understaffed. I said this before but it is so important to understand if we are going to get our arms wrong best. Almost 130 million americans live in areas with the Mental Health care provider shortage. Essentially, they do not even have one Mental Health care provider per thousand people. For 30,000 people. In washington eleMental Health Care Workforce is only able to meet 17 of our states needs, if we are going to turn the tide in the fight against fentanyl, that is going to have to change. We cannot lose sight of the fact that a strong Public Health system is easy access to treatment for everyone are some of the most powerful tools in our arsenal. We need to make sure every community has a robust Public Health department, with the help needed to stop overdoses, stop spikes, and the ability to raise Public Awareness about rising threats like counterfeit drugs, laced with fentanyl. And, we need to support programs on the front lines, in our communities that are focused on prevention, treatment, and Recovery Support. I fought hard to invest in our communities to expand Mental Health and Substance Use disorder care, through helping build our Mental Health and Substance Abuse workforce in our Rural Communities, to federal grants, which set up dozens of new Treatment Centers across our states, and the American Rescue plan, which included critical funds for this work. But to talk to anyone on the front lines of this for two seconds, and understand we have a lot more to do, talk to the fire chief in seattle, who told me a few months ago, they responded to four overdoses every day. Talk with the university of washington researcher who told me how 80 of people, who could benefit from surfaces to keep him alive cannot access them. Talked with the nurse, who told secretary the sarah how there are just not enough beds to get people treatment. And the mom who told them about how she lost their job, her house and her child while she was struggling with fentanyl addiction. Talk to jason cochrane, at the Second Chance foundation in everett, who talk about the challenge of trying to get kids the treatment they need, or the many people who desperately tried to help find an open treatment bed, for a 15 year old earlier this year, calling context, posting to facebook, all to no avail. It is so clear that leaders like jason, who are on the frontlines of this crisis, mean so much more for our federal agencies and from this congress. More when it comes to getting fentanyl off of the streets, and more when it comes to getting people the health care they need. Which is why i am as determined as ever to continue the progress that senator burr and i our making on a bipartisan package on Mental Health and Substance Use disorder. We need to support the programs on the ground, in our communities that are already doing lifesaving work to identify people who are at risk and prevent Substance Use disorders in the first place, to get people treatment, and to support people and recovery. We need new programs, especially when it comes to addressing the new challenges we are seeing, with fentanyl, and with heartbreaking increases in overdoses among young people. So i will continue to press for us to advance as an expensive a package as possible, as quickly as possible. And i believe that we can do it because we have done it before. In 2016, and again in 2018, democrats and republicans worked together to pass some of the most comprehensive legislation, to respond to the Opioid Crisis in our countrys history. That has made a big difference. That legislation is undoubtedly saved lives. But ive traveled to just about every part of Washington State to talk about this crisis, from everett, seattle, long view to the try cities, spoken and more. And the challenges we deal with are not the same challenges that we faced in 2018. So now, it is on all of us to build on the bipartisan progress that we have made, and it is painfully clear that our communities cannot wait. They need us to meet this moment with serious action and life saving support for families. With that, i will turn it over to sanity cassidy for his opening records. Thank you, chair. And Ranking Member burr who allowed me to leave this meeting. As a physician, i took care of patients with addiction. But it does not take a physician taking care of those with addiction, to know that we have a fentanyl crisis. Everyone here, and everyone watching those of someone who has died, or suffered from addiction related to opioids. If you read of a young person who died, a teenager, or in college, most often it is related to a Drug Overdose. And you think about the tragedy of that child, whose whole future was before she or he, and now it has ended. Not just affecting their lives, but all the generations that would come after them, from that wonderful person. It is incumbent upon us to address this issue. Now the statistics. Fentanyl is killing over 200 americans a day. In 2021, we saw the largest annual increase in opioid deaths in 50 years. In the 35 years between 1979 and 2016, 600,000 americans died of an overdose, and 100,000 died last year. I will speak of my own state. Louisianas drug Overdose Deaths hit a record high of 2100 in the 12 months leading up to march of 2021. Overdose mortality increased statewide by over 56 , from 2020 to 2021. New orleans was up 51 in 2020, with 365 Overdose Deaths. Jefferson paris, 69 . Santana, 35, in saint bernard, up 64 . And we know the cause of this, it is fentanyl. Illegal fentanyl and fentanyl related substances are flooding into our market from our southern border, in unprecedented amounts. The bulk of this, ultimately originating from a handful of manufacturers in wuhan, china. Fentanyl accounted for 64 of 100,000 Overdose Deaths from last year. Two out of every three people who died from opioids, it is from fentanyl or fentanyl like drugs. No congress has to continue to pass tools to fight this from multiple fronts. First we need to make the classification of fentanyl analogues, as a schedule one drugs, permanent. Several of my colleagues and i introduced the halt lethal trafficking of fentanyl act last year to do just that. Secondly, we must educate americans, on just how deadly fentanyl is. Two milligrams is enough to kill someone. I was proud to join senator marshall and other doctors in the congress to record a psa, informing americans about the risk of fentanyl. Health experts and Public Officials need to continue with such efforts. Thirdly, the border. Last year the dea sees 20 million fake bills, and 50,000 pounds of fentanyl. Enough for 440 million lethal doses. When i went to the border, i saw this big cage of illegal drugs. I said, how much do you think you are getting . They probably think we are getting a third of it. So, if we seize this much, that much more went through. We must recognize that a policy of the border, which has been feckless and ineffective as it has had, does not allow people to have, people who are illegal Illegal Immigrants but it allows people to come across as well. We have got to control that border give is a message in which the administration will get use your tools to control. Force me to combat the drug cartels to finance the production of smuggling of illicit fentanyl into the United States. Selling synthetic opioids, laced with fentanyl is a major source of revenue for cartels, drugs gangs criminal organizations and for organizations such as hezbollah. They use a financial process, including one known is trade based money laundering, to disguise their activities and illegally move this country in and out of the country. It is a use of Financial Exchanges that look like legitimate trade to serve as cover for illicit flows of money. If we can stop the financing of the drug trade we can stop the trade of drugs. We need to look at loopholes in our system. Cartels will ship chinese made fentanyl into our mail saying that the contents of the package is worth less than 800, which is the threshold preparing tariffs. Because it is declared the less than 800, customs and Border Protection does not inspect the package and it passes through. It is a delay glaring loophole in our customs system. I look forward to discussing these solutions and more in todays hearing, Congress Failing to address this crisis threatens our National Security, and risks the safety of individuals who do not know that one pill laced with fentanyl can kill. Which means that there will be one more obituary of an 18 year old child whose life is gone forever. With that, i yield. Thank you, senator cassidy, i will now introduce todays witnesses. Mr. Kemp chester is the Senior Policy Adviser for supply reduction and international issuance in the office of National Drug control policy. Doctor miriam e. Delphinrittmon is the assistant secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, and head of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health service administration. Miss Carole Johnson is the administrator of the Health Resources and services administrator. And, dr. Christopher jo