The last two years have made clear how important it is for every family in North Carolina to have access to quality, affordable health care.  We have struggled with a brutal pandemic which has taken the lives of too many friends, neighbors, and family members.

Thanks to President Biden's American Rescue Plan and the Democratic members of Congress who supported it, we have glimpsed what health care could be like if our country -- and North Carolina in particular -- really committed to assuring that every individual and every family have access to the health care they need, regardless of age, race, or income level.

Too many of our friends and family have been harmed by the opioid epidemic in North Carolina.  For many, it starts innocently enough with a prescription for pain.  And then, they find themselves in the downward cycle of substance abuse.

In 2020, 3,304 Carolinians died from an overdose -- that's more than 9 deaths every day, and 40% more than died in 2019.  What's more, there was a 22% increase from 2020 to 2021, largely due to the stresses of the COVID pandemic and the prevalence of contaminated street drugs like heroin and fentanyl. 

But we are on our way to recovery.