YORK, Maine - Maine Sen. Angus King is calling on Congress to pass an emergency funding bill to fight the country's opioid abuse epidemic. King, an independent, says the $600 million bill combats opioid abuse on multiple fronts, from law enforcement to treatment to prevention.
King says most cases of heroin abuse begin with prescription drugs. "So one of the places I really want to focus some attention is prescription drugs - how are they controlled, how many are prescribed," he said at a news conference today at York Hospital in the southern Maine town of York.
King said the growing epidemic is devastating families. He is sponsoring the bill with New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat.
