The National Institute on drug abuse. This is two hours and 15 minutes. Good morning. Welcome to this hearing called fentanyl the next wave of the Opioid Crisis. America is in a full on Opioid Crisis. It started with the overprescribing of opioid drugs and then shifted more to heroin. Today, the subcommittee examines the next wave of the Opioid Crisis and fentanyl. Fentanyl is made in the lab and for many years, it has been a powerful pain medication used by patients with cancer or for those with extreme pain. When i was injured in iraq a few years ago, Battlefield Medicine they, and recovery, gave me lots of fentanyl patches. It is 50 times more potent than heroine and 100 times more potent than morphine. Now, fentanyl has been a powerful additive. This is the way the drug dealers increase profits and expand the number of addicts, by juicing the potency of heroine or other street drugs, like people have done with msg in foods. Users often do not know that fentanyl is in the heroine. T
I thought it only appropriate that on our first show back, that jacket the Michael Phelps jacket, i got you a replica. Can we please bring kate in . Heres the music. . Okay. Dim the lights. Tada. Look at that, turn around. It lights up. I saw that. Wow. Kate is wearing your replica of the exact Michael Phelps jacket. Batteryoperated. Thats convenient. Where are this . I dont know. Probably some ralph lauren jeans like you are. I thought it was going to be Michael Phelps coming. We have kate and the jacket. Im thrilled. Thank you, kate. Leave it isnt that cute . Its adorable. We had a big flood when we were away. Our dressing room got flooded. We get new shoes. I walked in. And my dressing room looked floor is byebye. Heres the thing. You know what did survive the flood . We shouldnt laugh about big with loading and everything going on in louisiana. The pair of shoes you had for nine years, since we started working together, they survived the flood. We want to say welcome, officially, t
The news comes as more and more children report to hospitals and doctors offices across the country with cases of poisoning from these very products. But is the fda move too little too late . Joining me the doctor who first told us about the injuries, gaylord lopez, director of the georgia Poison Center. Doctor, welcome back to the show. Great to have you here. Fda announcing, people using ecigs, have to be at least 18 years of age. A Health Warning is required. You cant sell these things in vending machines. They have to register all products an ingredients with the fda. No more free samples. Which is i find things interesting. That is great way to help people get hooked. Do you think the food and Drug Administration has gone far enough . The right steps have been taken. Those of us in the Poison Center world want to see a few more. They include putting hazard or warning labels that reflect this stuff can be very poisonous, if just touched on the skin. Precautions about handling. Prob
I thank you for raising them yourself. Just so that were clear, mr. Horowitz, am i correct in characterizing our discussion about the correct reading of the Inspector General act as nonpartisan in nature . Correct. All right. We have in our possession several letters written over the course of late 2011 from attorney general eric holder and Deputy Attorney james coal. In each of these letters, over the objection of the fbi General Council, the Department Grants you access to sensitive material. As recently as last thursday and his response to your offices report on material witness statute, the Deputy Attorney general again pledged, quote, to provide your office with access to all materials in to complete our reviews consistent with young. Yes, the departments leadership made clear they will continue to issue orders giving us access. So our issue isnt with getting these documents, its, frankly, the process of played out compromises our independence. Have the attorney general and Deputy
Helpful to you . Yes. In getting us these orders, they have been helpful. In issuing these orders, theyve been helpful in getting us the access. Now, as the only member of the committee that was voted for the 1978 act, i agree wholeheartedly with your testimony. Congress meant what it said in section 6a of the act. Inspector general must be given complete, timely, unfiltered access to agency records. In your opinion, why did the General Council of the fbi feel compelled to arrive at a different interpretation of the same statute . I would be speculating, frac frankly, as to what the motivation was. But theres, i think, its clear as youve indicated from looking at the opinion and you have it, its attached to my statement, that the ig act, i think, trumps the arguments quite clearly. Well, i hope the office of Legal Council issues a strong opinion giving your office unequivocal access to the material and information that you require. And this committee is going to be watching that very c