Sep. 28, 2016

On Wednesday, Gov. Tom Wolf addressed a joint session of the General Assembly to emphasize the magnitude of the effects that the opioid and heroin abuse crisis has on Pennsylvania. Brown was selected to serve as a member of the governor’s escort committee, where legislators are responsible for escorting the governor to the House floor for his address. The legislators on the governor’s escort committee for this joint session are pictured (from left): Sen. Tom Killion (R-9); Sen. John Wozniak (D-35); Sen. Gene Yaw (R-23); Gov. Wolf; Rep. Doyle Heffley (R-Carbon); Rep. Rosemary M. Brown (R-Monroe/Pike); and Rep. Dan Miller (D-Allegheny).
HARRISBURG – On Wednesday, Gov. Tom Wolf addressed a joint session of the General Assembly to emphasize the magnitude of the effects that the opioid and heroin abuse crisis has on Pennsylvania. Rep. Rosemary M. Brown (R-Monroe/Pike) has been a sponsor and supporter of meaningful legislation to create solutions to this epidemic. Due to her work on the issue, Brown was selected to serve as a member of the governor’s escort committee, where legislators are responsible for escorting the governor to the House floor for his address. She issued the following comment at the conclusion of the joint session:

“I certainly agree with the governor that we still have a lot of work to do to address this issue, and that swift action is truly needed. We are losing about 10 people every day to addiction, and the families, friends and communities of those loved ones lost are counting on us to develop solutions that help.

“The governor outlined a few bills he would like on his desk as soon as possible so he can sign them into law. One of those bills is House Bill 1699, of which I am the prime sponsor. Under this bill, a health care practitioner would be prohibited from prescribing more than seven days of an opioid drug product in an emergency department or urgent care center, unless more is required to treat an acute medical condition. This bill passed the House on June 23, and I am urging the Senate to consider this bill now. It is vital that we seek to ensure that patients suffering from chronic pain get the relief they need while also minimizing the potential of harmful consequences of addiction.

“Pennsylvania is in a public health crisis like we’ve never seen before. As the governor said, this epidemic was not created overnight and unfortunately we can’t fix it overnight, or possibly even in this session. But we have to begin somewhere and get the good bills we have already created over the finish line. Moving forward, we must continue to suggest potential solutions. Ultimately, the goal is to stem the tide of opioid abuse in Pennsylvania.”

For more information about this issue, or any state-related issue, contact Brown’s district office in East Stroudsburg located at 143 Seven Bridge Road, by calling 570-420-8301. Information can also be found on online at RepBrown.com or Facebook.com/RepRosemaryBrown.

Representative Rosemary M. Brown
189th District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Krisinda Corbin
717.705.2032
KCorbin@pahousegop.com
RepBrown.com / Facebook.com/RepRosemaryBrown
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