Mike Rogers distorts opioid record to boost Senate bid

Mike Rogers, a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Michigan, misrepresented his record on fighting the opioid epidemic in a recent editorial for Deadline Detroit.

Rogers has been criticized for championing the National Pain Care Policy Act when he served in Congress from 2001 to 2015, a law that some say encouraged doctors to treat chronic pain with pharmaceuticals like OxyContin.

“In Congress, I voted to allow Americans who are suffering from debilitating pain to have access to the treatment they need to live comfortably,” Rogers wrote. He added that the legislation had safeguards to prevent overprescription and addiction.

But this isn’t true. The National Pain Care Policy Act did not include any penalties for doctors who overprescribe. It also didn’t set prescribing limits or expand law enforcement’s ability to police opioids.

In 2003, Rogers held a press conference touting the National Pain Care Policy Act with the American Pain Society, a nonprofit group that raised awareness about chronic pain and backed pharmaceuticals to treat it. The group disbanded in 2019 over allegations that it colluded with pharmaceutical companies to promote opioids.

Rogers has also been criticized for accepting large donations from the pharmaceutical industry. Since 1999, he has received more than $1 million in contributions from Big Pharma and other health care-related entities.

Data from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services show a clear correlation between the rate of opioid prescriptions and overdoses in the state, particularly between 2001 and 2010. In 2010, the FDA cracked down on opioid prescriptions and reformulated OxyContin so it was harder to crush or dissolve for illicit use. In subsequent years, the rate of heroin and fentanyl overdoses has skyrocketed.

Rogers is expected to win the August 4 Republican primary in Michigan. He ran unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate in 2024.

A handful of Democrats are competing to challenge Rogers, including Rep. Haley Stevens, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, and physician Abdul El-Sayed.