Washington, D.C. - Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call our attention to National Addiction Recovery Month this September, and I encourage all my colleagues to join me in recognizing and commending those who commit their time and effort to addiction recovery.
In 2005, an estimated 19 million Americans used illicit drugs. The impact of this pandemic is felt not only by individuals and their families, but by society as well. Addiction costs our society and economy billions of dollars each year, in health care costs, property damage, and lost productivity. It also costs lives, and causes immense amounts of grief and pain. Addiction is a disease, and it must be attacked as such. No one is immune from addiction, as it afflicts people of all ages, all races, all classes, and all professions.
As with any serious disease, the treatment for addiction relies on great amounts of research and advances in health sciences. There have been tremendous strides in the fight against addiction.
Congress allocates billions of dollars each year on addiction research at the National Institutes of Health. The NIH is a leader in this regard, and it has committed funds to research on addiction, including research on how addiction takes over the brain, the body, and the central nervous system. We must continue to fund NIH at the level it deserves so scientists can unlock the mysteries of addiction and its impact on individuals and society.
Today, September 20, 2006, is National Addiction Professionals Day, and I applaud the hard work and dedication of addiction counselors who must encounter daily the difficult task of prevention, intervention, and treatment. The research on addiction that NIH conducts can only support and complement the addiction counselors' efforts in helping many Americans afflicted with addiction. We need to give them all of the support we can.
Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in recognizing the valuable contributions of all those who devote their time and energy to addiction recovery. We should honor and appreciate their hard work. Congress has shown strong support for this issue. However, we are far from victory, and we must continue our steadfast fight against drug and alcohol addiction. I look forward to the day when addiction to drugs and alcohol are eradicated, and these wonderful professionals can take their final bow.