Remarks from FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., as prepared for oral testimony before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce Hearing, “Federal Efforts to Combat the Opioid Crisis: A Status Update on CARA and Other Initiatives

Remarks from FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., as prepared for oral testimony before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce Hearing, “Federal Efforts to Combat the Opioid Crisis: A Status Update on CARA and Other Initiatives”
	Chairman Walden and Ranking Member Pallone, thank you for the opportunity to testify today before the full committee. The epidemic of opioid addiction that’s devastating our nation is the biggest crisis facing public health officials, FDA included. As this crisis grew, many of us didn’t recognize the consequence of this threat. We missed opportunities to stem its spread. So we find ourselves at a tragic crossroad. We have a crisis of such massive proportion that the actions we need to take are going to be hard. We’ll need to touch clinical practice in ways that may make certain parties uncomfortable. This may include such steps as restrictions on prescribing, or mandatory education on providers. Long ago, we ran out of straightforward options. Continue reading.