Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chair Diana DeGette (D-CO) announced today that the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee will hold a hearing on Tuesday, July 16, at 10 am in the John D. Dingell Room, 2123 Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing is entitled, “Oversight of Federal Efforts to Combat the Spread of Illicit Fentanyl."
“As the nation continues to grapple with the opioid epidemic, Congress must remain engaged and vigilant as we confront the rising threat of illicit fentanyl," Pallone and DeGette said. “Next week, the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee will hold a hearing with witnesses from key federal agencies on the frontlines of responding to the opioid crisis for an update on the government’s response efforts to combat fentanyl."
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently released data showing that there were over 47,000 drug overdose deaths involving opioids in 2017 and 28,000 of those deaths involved synthetic opioids such as fentanyl - an increase of nearly 47 percent from the previous year. The CDC referred to the surge in synthetic opioid deaths as the “third wave" of the national opioid epidemic.
Information for this hearing, including the Committee Memorandum, witness list and testimony, and a live webcast, will be posted HERE as they become available.
