{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://walden.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/press-release-greg-walden-need-combat-nationwide-opioid-epidemic", "PRESS RELEASE: Greg Walden on need to combat nationwide opioid epidemic: \u201cEveryone has a stake in this fight\u201d", "2017-10-25", "2017", "2017-10", "Republican", "House", "OR", "Greg Walden", "W000791", "walden.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Greg Walden on need to combat nationwide opioid epidemic: \u201cEveryone has\u00a0a stake in this fight\u201d \n Questions DEA on lack of cooperation, response to committee investigation into opioid pill dumping \nClick here or on the image above to view Walden\u2019s opening remarks from today\u2019s hearing\nWASHINGTON, D.C. --\u00a0As part of his ongoing efforts to combat the opioid epidemic in Oregon, Rep. Greg Walden (R-Hood River) today led a hearing on the federal government\u2019s response to the nationwide crisis. Walden, who serves as Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, cited the deadly effects of drug abuse in Oregon as need for an \u201call-hands-on-deck\u201d approach to address the opioid epidemic.\n\u201cIn last year alone, opioid overdoses have claimed the lives of more Americans than the entire Vietnam War. In my home state of Oregon, more people died last year from drug overdoses than from car accidents,\u201d said Walden. \u201cWe hear these statistics over and over again. At roundtables throughout my district -- most recently in Grants Pass, in southern Oregon, and Bend, in central Oregon -- I\u2019ve heard the stories of Oregonians who put names and faces to these data points.\u201d\nWalden also questioned the DEA on their lack of cooperation and response to an Energy and Commerce Committee investigation into alleged opioid pill dumping by major drug companies. Walden, joined by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, has repeatedly requested data and information from the DEA, including a specific inquiry into the shipment of 9 million highly addictive opioid painkillers to a rural town of less than 400 people.\n\"I\u2019m going to be very blunt: my patience is wearing thin. Our requests for data from the DEA are met with delay, excuses and, frankly, inadequate response,\u201d Walden said in his opening statement. \u201cPeople are dying. Lives and families are ruined. It is time for DEA to get this committee the information we need, and to do it quickly. No more dodges. No more delays.\u201d\nDuring Walden\u2019s questioning, he followed up on the issues raised during his opening statement, asking Mr. Neil Doherty, DEA\u2019s Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Diversion Control, a number of questions pertaining to the committee\u2019s ongoing investigation.\nClick here or on the image above to view an excerpt from Walden\u2019s questioning\u00a0\n\u201cWe still don\u2019t have all of the answers to the bipartisan letter we sent in May. And some of the responses the DEA has provided, frankly, are not adequate,\u201d Walden began. \u201cFor example, in the May letter we asked the DEA to produce documents about delayed or blocked enforcement actions.\u00a0 Do you know how many documents your agency has produced? The answer is zero.\u00a0\n\u201cYour agency responded, and this is a direct quote, \u2018DEA is unaware of documents related to delayed or blocked enforcement actions and suspension orders.\u2019 Well, we have obtained some documents that look pretty responsive to our request,\u201d Walden said, referring to documents obtained from an anonymous source. \u201cAnd yet from the agency, we\u2019re told you\u2019re \u2018unaware of documents related to delayed or blocked enforcement actions and suspension orders.\u2019 This is a problem. Enough is enough. Will you, on behalf of the DEA, commit today to producing the documents and information we\u2019ve requested, and soon? Or do I simply need to issue a subpoena, because we are done waiting.\u201d\nPlease click here to view Walden\u2019s full questioning. To learn more about the Energy and Commerce Committee\u2019s bipartisan investigation, click here.\u00a0\nAs Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, Walden is at the forefront of the federal government\u2019s response to the opioid epidemic, which takes the lives of 91 Americans every day. Walden called for increased urgency to combat the widespread crisis that has plagued Oregon and the country as a whole.\n\u201cWe all want to end this scourge,\u201d Walden said.\u00a0 \u201cWe have a duty to our constituents and the American people to combat the epidemic from all angles -- everyone has a stake in this fight.\u201d\nFor more information on today\u2019s hearing, including an archived webcast, background memo, and witness testimony, please click here.\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://walden.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/press-release-greg-walden-need-combat-nationwide-opioid-epidemic"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9320289827883244, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}