Rep. McKinley tackles opioid abuse

It’s been a big week in the fight against opioid abuse.

“We saw the House unite,” said House Speaker Paul Ryan. "All in all, we passed 18 bipartisan bills.”

Those bills address the opioid crisis on several levels -- prevention, treatment, education, and enforcement.

“In West Virginia, our overdose rate for youth on opioids is twice the national average,” explained Rep. David McKinley (R-WV).

McKinley added several amendments to the package of bills. He wants to make sure smaller communities get their share of funding to combat the problem.

“It’s one thing to fight a drug problem in St. Louis or Chicago or New York, where they have detox facilities. We don’t have those in rural America,” said McKinley.

“We’ve had our fair share of overdose deaths, we’ve seen in increase in crime,” said Kendra Johnson with Westbrook Health Services — a community health center, which covers eight counties in West Virginia.

Johnson says the crisis is affecting every aspect of society – from school kids to senior citizens. She’s glad lawmakers are finally getting the message, because organizations like hers need help.

“Stopping the flow and the trafficking – that’s an effort [Congress is] making. That has to happen,” said Johnson. "Then we have to have the resources when these folks come in and say, ‘I’m ready to do something. I’m ready to get help.’"

The Senate passed its own opioid legislation. Now, both chambers are coming together to work out a final deal they can send to President Obama’s desk.