Press Releases
Kline Supports Bipartisan Agreement to Combat Opioid Epidemic
Minnesota Congressman John Kline, chairman of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, praised House passage of a bipartisan, bicameral agreement to fight the nation’s growing opioid epidemic. The agreement includes a legislative proposal championed by Kline's committee that will strengthen protections for infants born with drug exposure by requiring the Department of Health and Human Services to better ensure states are meeting current child welfare requirements.
Minnesota Congressman John Kline, chairman of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, praised House passage of a bipartisan, bicameral agreement to fight the nation’s growing opioid epidemic. The agreement includes a legislative proposal championed by Kline's committee that will strengthen protections for infants born with drug exposure by requiring the Department of Health and Human Services to better ensure states are meeting current child welfare requirements. The bipartisan proposal, entitled the Infant Plan of Safe Care Improvement Act (H.R. 4843), was passed by the House of Representatives in May by a vote of 421-0. “The opioid epidemic is devastating families and communities across the country, and it is destroying the lives of innocent children who are suffering the painful consequences of their parents’ addiction,” Chairman Kline said. “This bipartisan, bicameral agreement will provide immediate help to men and women struggling with addiction. Just as importantly, it will help ensure the most vulnerable victims of this epidemic and their mothers receive the care they desperately need. I appreciate the leadership of Representatives Barletta and Clark in championing this proposal. Their reforms, and the broader House-Senate agreement, will make a real difference in the lives of countless individuals. I urge the Senate to send this agreement to the president’s desk without delay.”
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