Press Releases

Washington, DC – Yesterday, February 14, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (D-MA-03) announced that she would be joining the Freshmen Working Group on Addiction, a bipartisan effort to promote policies to end the addiction crisis in the United States.

Rep. Trahan joins this group along with 36 other Members of the newly-elected freshman class from across the nation. The purpose of the group is to come together to understand the extent of the impacts of addiction and to jointly promote policies to reduce overdoses and deaths.

“Massachusetts has seen overdose rates at levels that are higher than the national average. Last year across the US over 70,000 people died from drug overdoses alone, and Americans are now more likely to die from an opioid overdose than from a car crash. There’s not a community in the country that is immune to the disease of addiction, and it is time we all come together to tackle this crisis,” said Rep. Trahan. “This historically large freshman class has an opportunity to be a catalyst in the effort to make sure appropriate resources are making it to communities in need. I look forward collaborating with my colleagues on this working group to get results for our constituents and their families who may be suffering from addiction.”  

“Over a third of the freshman class has joined this bipartisan group that understands the importance of coming together to fight the addiction problem in our country,” said Congressman David Trone, the group’s founder. “With 192 deaths every day, my colleagues and I are ready to fight back. I’m looking forward to working with Congresswoman Trahan to bring fresh eyes and new ideas to take action against this epidemic.”

As part of the working group, Members will meet on a regular basis to hear from experts and stakeholders, make site visits to institutions focusing on research and treatment, and promote legislation in order to tackle the epidemic.

Current members of the Freshmen Working Group on Addiction include Reps. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND), Tim Burchett (R-TN), Gil Cisneros (D-CA), Ben Cline (R-VA), TJ Cox (D-CA), Angie Craig (D-MN), Dan Crenshaw (R-TX), Jason Crow (D-CO), Madeleine Dean (D-PA), Antonio Delgado (D-NY), Lance Gooden (R-TX),  Deb Haaland (D-NM), Jahana Hayes (D-C), Katie Hill (D-CA), Chrissy Houlahan (PA-06), Dusty Johnson (R-SD), Ann Kirkpatrick (D-AZ), Susie Lee (D-NV), Mike Levin (D-CA), Ben McAdams (D-UT), Dan Meuser (R-PA), Chris Pappas (D-NH), Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA), Denver Riggleman (R-VA), Max Rose (D-NY), Donna Shalala (D-FL), Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ), Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), Bryan Steil (R-WI), Van Taylor (R-TX), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Lori Trahan (D-MA), David Trone (D-MD), Steve Watkins (R-KS), Jennifer Wexton (D-VA), and Susan Wild (D-PA).

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