Sen. Murphy Report: GOP Health Care Bill Would Make Connecticut’s Opioid Epidemic Worse

WASHINGTON, July 7 -- The office of Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Conn., issued the following news release:

As the opioid epidemic ravages Connecticut communities and as Senate Republicans continue to push their health care repeal bill that threatens access to addiction treatment for millions of people, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) released a report called "CODE BLUE: What Trumpcare Would Mean in the Fight Against the Opioid Epidemic in Connecticut." Murphy's report makes clear that the House and Senate Republican health care plans would take major steps backwards in the fight against opioid addiction by ending Medicaid expansion, cutting traditional Medicaid by billions of dollars, slashing tax credits that help make insurance premiums affordable, and allowing states to waive treatment coverage requirements.

"The epidemic of addiction and overdoses is overwhelming Connecticut families and communities. If Trumpcare passes, things will get even worse.

Those who need treatment most could be kicked off of their health insurance and lose access to addiction services, or go bankrupt trying to pay for it," said Murphy. "Connecticut residents can't afford for Congress to ignore this crisis any longer. I'm ready to work with Republicans to write a bill that actually helps end the addiction epidemic - too many lives depend on it."

Read Murphy's report here: https://www.murphy.senate.gov/download/code-blue

On Monday, Murphy and U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) will host a summit on the opioid epidemic at noon in Bridgeport.

The House and Senate Republican health care bills represent a massive cost shift to states and could cost Connecticut up to $2.9 billion per year. This massive erosion in federal support for Medicaid would force states like Connecticut to choose between cutting Medicaid, raising taxes on middle class families, or cutting other important state spending programs, like school funding - all to pay for a tax cut for the very wealthy.

In Connecticut, more than 917 people died of a drug overdose in 2016, a 25 percent increase over 2015. Heroin accounted for 508 deaths in 2016 - a 22 percent increase from the previous year. In 2016, 483 people died of a fentanyl related overdose - a 544 percent increase from 2014.