MILWAUKEE (AP) _ U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin is opening up about her mother's opioid addiction, telling the story for the first time publicly as she runs for re-election.
Baldwin on Tuesday said she felt the time was right after her mother's death in August and a recent Senate health committee hearing where she was moved by the stories of families affected by opioid abuse.
Baldwin was raised by her grandparents but has never said why. She says the reason is her mother struggled with mental illness and was addicted to powerful narcotics that were prescribed to help her deal with both chronic and sometimes acute pain.
She says the current opioid addiction epidemic ``hits close to home for me and for so many others.''