In the News
Tragic tales of pain pill addiction | Charleston Gazette-Mail
by Editorial
Everyone knows that West Virginia has America's worst rate of opioid overdose deaths. President Obama came to Charleston to spotlight the deadly pain pill menace. Police and health departments frantically seek safeguards, and administer naloxone to save some victims. To show the reality, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., has been reading victim letters on the floor of the U.S. Senate in Washington. The first was from a young Beckley teacher who said her mother's painkiller addiction wrecked the … Continue Reading
February 11, 2016
Manchin continues filibuster with letter from another addict's daughter | Beckley Register Herald
by Misty Poe
FAIRMONT - There isn't a day that goes by when Kylie doesn't think about her father. At the end of the month, it will be nine years since she last saw her father. Kylie was a junior in high school at the time in Clarksburg, but she stayed home from school that day. Her father had been going through drug withdrawals, and when she woke up at about 10 a.m. that morning, Kylie found him dead. "He'd found drugs and overdosed while I was asleep, leaving me there to find him," Kylie wrote in a … Continue Reading
February 10, 2016
Manchin: Culture change needed in FDA | Times West Virginian
by Misty Poe
FAIRMONT - There isn't a day that goes by when Kylie doesn't think about her father. At the end of the month, it will be nine years since she last saw her father. Kylie was a junior in high school at the time in Clarksburg, but she stayed home from school that day. Her father had been going through drug withdrawals, and when she woke up at about 10 a.m. that morning, Kylie found him dead. "He'd found drugs and overdosed while I was asleep, leaving me there to find him," Kylie wrote in a … Continue Reading
February 10, 2016
Sen. Manchin takes West Virginia's drug problem to Senate floor | Clarksburg Exponent Telegram
by Brittany Murray
CLARKSBURG - U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., went to the Senate floor Tuesday to read two letters from West Virginians who had been personally impacted by the opioid epidemic. "We're getting these by the hundreds," Manchin said. "I'm hoping that as we share the West Virginia stories, every other senator is taking a look at their own state. People are losing their parents, their home life, their spouse and their loved ones. It strips you of everything you've got." One letter, written by a … Continue Reading
February 04, 2016
Manchin reads local teacher's letter on drugs' impact on her life to Senate | Beckley Register-Herald
by Daniel Tyson
Haley Pettus was teaching English to a group of high schoolers in Beckley at 2:15 p.m. Wednesday. At the same time, more than 300 miles away, Sen. Joe Manchin, D, stood in the well of the U.S. Senate, reading a letter his office received recently. A letter detailing one child's struggle to live with a mother strung out on pain killers, everything from Xanax and Lortab to oxycodone. "My mom's one true love was Xanax and I would always come after it, no matter what," the first paragraph … Continue Reading
January 31, 2016
Drug Epidemic: Reclassification Making a Difference | Bluefield Daily Telegraph
When the federal government finally took long-overdue action in late 2014 to reschedule the highly addictive hydrocodone-combination drugs from schedule III to schedule II narcotics, the hope at the time was that the change would play a significant role in curbing opioid abuse. And the change is helping, according to new report released last week. The study found that the number of opioid prescriptions in the nation has been reduced by 26.3 million, or 1.1 billion tablets, since the approval … Continue Reading
January 31, 2016
Manchin Discusses Addiction Problems, Federal Concerns During Recent Visit | Times West Virginian
by Michelle Dillon
FAIRMONT - Sen. Joe Manchin visited the Marion County Day Report Center on Friday to talk about drug abuse in West Virginia. Manchin spoke with the director of the Day Report Center Ted Offutt, current participants in the program, and the staff of the day report center. Also in attendance was Circuit Court Judge Patrick N. Wilson. Manchin asked the FDA to change opiates from a Schedule III to a Schedule II substance, making it harder for patients to be prescribed them, Manchin said. The … Continue Reading
January 31, 2016
Prescription Overdose Study Sparks Outrage Among Lawmakers | Bluefield Daily Telegraph
by Greg Jordan
PRINCETON - A study showing how patients who survive overdoses on prescription medications only to be prescribed even more pills has sparked both outrage and calls for reforming the way physicians prescribe pain medications. A recent study published in the Annuals of Internal Medicine found that more than 90 percent of the 3,000 chronic pain patients included in the study who had survived an opioid related overdose between 2000 and 2012 kept receiving opioid medicines from their doctors. The … Continue Reading
January 29, 2016
Railroad Merger: Federal Review Is Prudent Move | Bluefield Daily Telegraph
Opposition to the possible merger between Norfolk Southern and Canadian Pacific, a move that could potentially impact hundreds of jobs in already hard-hit West Virginia, is growing. Talk of the possible merger also is creating additional concern in Bluefield where good jobs already are being lost by the crippling consolidation of Norfolk Southern's Bluefield-based Pocahontas Division with its existing Virginia Division in Roanoke. U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., is calling for a Senate … Continue Reading
January 28, 2016
Manchin to students: ‘You’ve got to shovel your own snow’ | The East Liverpool Review
by STEPHEN HUBA
NEW MANCHESTER-Sounding by turns like a politician, a parent, a teacher and a job recruiter, U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin III told a group of Oak Glen High School seniors Wednesday that they shouldn't shun hard work. "Today, people give up too easily. When I was growing up, you could do pretty well with a high school education. You could get a job in a factory or a mine and be there your whole life," he said. "This is a different world. You probably will have four, five, six jobs in your … Continue Reading
January 28, 2016
Railroad Merger Could Hurt West Virginia | Herald Dispatch
Officials representing West Virginia are right to sound the alarm over the Canadian Pacific railroad's attempts to acquire Norfolk Southern, one of the two major railroad companies serving West Virginia. The basis for their concern comes down to one thing - jobs - albeit from two perspectives. One aspect is the number of jobs that could be lost in the Mountain State if Canadian Pacific is successful in its takeover bid. The other is the potential impact on a project in Wayne County aimed … Continue Reading
January 27, 2016
Send Coal Ash Bill To the White House | The Intelligencer/Wheeling News-Register
Even Environmental Protection Agency officials backed away from a plan to establish job-killing new regulations on coal ash after U.S. Rep. David McKinley, R-W.Va., pointed out they were not needed. States could do a better job of managing coal ash rules, he noted. But that was years ago, and McKinley's proposal to give states that authority still has not become law. Though the measure has been approved by the House of Representatives, a threat by President Barack Obama to veto it has … Continue Reading
January 27, 2016
Manchin to Filibuster Obama's Nominee for FDA Chief | Charleston Gazette-Mail
by Eric Eyre
West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin announced plans Wednesday to filibuster President Barack Obama's nominee to head the Food and Drug Administration, saying Obama's pick has close ties to the pharmaceutical industry and won't be tough enough against opioid painkillers. During a speech on the U.S. Senate floor, Manchin said the FDA needs a total overhaul, and Dr. Robert Califf, now second in command at the federal agency, won't make that happen. "I do not believe he is the leader we need to … Continue Reading
January 25, 2016
Manchin Legislation Stresses 'States-First' Approach in Coal Ash Disposal | WV Public Broadcasting
by Associated Press
Sen. Joe Manchin says legislation he's introducing would create an enforceable program for states to oversee the disposal of coal ash. The West Virginia Democrat has introduced the bill with a Republican Senate colleague. The proposal is scheduled for a hearing Tuesday before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. Coal ash is the residue from the burning of the fossil fuel to generate electricity. With tougher federal air pollution laws, many utilities are switching from coal … Continue Reading
January 13, 2016
Manchin slams Obama on coal | Parkersburg News and Sentinel
PARKERSBURG - A West Virginia senator had advice for President Obama in the hours before the chief executive delivered his last State of the Union speech. Sen. Joe Manchin reminded Obama he was the president of all the 50 states. "Not just a select few," Manchin said. Manchin, the only Democrat in the West Virginia congressional delegation, spoke to reporters from West Virginia by telephone conference call prior to the president delivering his annual address Tuesday to a joint session of … Continue Reading
January 12, 2016
Sen. Joe Manchin says WV left behind by Obama | Register-Herald
by Wendy Holdren
In his preview of the State of the Union address, Sen. Joe Manchin said he believes President Obama has left West Virginia behind. "You have to be president of all 50 states," Manchin told reporters Tuesday. "You can't leave any of us behind." He said West Virginians have faced challenging times in the past few years, especially with "unobtainable" and "unreasonable" clean air standards handed down by the president. The regulations have forced dozens of mines to close, leaving hundreds of … Continue Reading
January 12, 2016
Manchin: Don’t Be Proud Of Budget | Wheeling Intelligencer
by HEATHER ZIEGLER
WHEELING - U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said today, President Obama's looming budget debt is not a legacy to be proud of, and should be addressed sooner rather than later. "He will talk about the overall economy with over $19 trillion of debt. That's not a legacy to be proud of with no downward project to get rid of that debt," Manchin said during a press conference this morning. Manchin suggested Obama also will focus on job creation during his State of the Union address slated for … Continue Reading
January 10, 2016
Manchin emphasizes need for collaboration to expand energy sector; ways to clean up political process in Washington | Clarksburg Exponent Telegram
by John G. Miller
CLARKSBURG - U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said he hopes state leaders will look at working with officials from Pennsylvania and Ohio to form a regional energy hub to take full advantage of each state's natural gas reserves. Manchin told The Exponent Telegram Editorial Board that he believes it will take a unified effort to give all three states ample opportunities to do their best for their residents. "Government shouldn't take the lead, but they should be an investor," Manchin said, … Continue Reading
January 10, 2016
A true statesman: Manchin’s across the aisle mentality needed in today’s political climate | Clarksburg Exponent Telegram
by Editorial
U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., has sometimes drawn the ire of both political parties because of his stances on various issues. Not known as a consistent party-line voter, Manchin has an independent sense of seeking out the best information before rendering his vote. Sometimes he votes with his Democratic Party; sometimes he shows a more conservative edge. But always he stands ready to explain his view and work toward compromise. And while that has led to some criticism, ultimately we … Continue Reading
January 08, 2016
Transportation improvements are the focus of Manchin’s visit | Times West Virginian
Everyone likes to be commended for what they do - for how their business is accepted by the general public. If one is in the Army and the general drops by, that person wants everything to be spotlessly clean. If one commands a public building and a?U.S. senator drops by, well, he wants the senator to think the best of his business. That's what happened Wednesday when U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., dropped by to see the Fairmont-Marion County Transit Authority's new transfer station … Continue Reading
