Today, the U.S. Senate voted on the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA), a bipartisan bill that focuses on public health policies designed to combat the heroin and opioid epidemic in Florida and across the country. Until today, No-Show Marco missed every single vote on this important bill because he was too busy to work for the people of Florida during his self-serving presidential run.

While many Republicans are campaigning on the fight against opioid addiction, Rubio’s history of missing key CARA votes and killing prescription drug legislation while in the Florida legislature exposes his “efforts” to combat this public health crisis as nothing more than lip service. As Buzzfeed reported last month, Rubio blocked a prescription-drug monitoring program in the Florida House as an act of political retribution at a time when Florida was the “pill mill capital” of the country.

“Marco Rubio has provided nothing more than lip service in the fight against opioid abuse,” said  FDP Chair Allison Tant. “While campaigning for president, No-Show Marco missed every single vote on the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act he supposedly supported. In Tallahassee, he killed a vital prescription drug monitoring program in a petty act of political revenge against a rival. Marco Rubio continues to prove that he will never miss an opportunity to put his political ambitions ahead of doing what’s right for Florida families.”  

Marco Rubio missed every vote on the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act to campaign for president:

March 10: Rubio missed a vote on a bipartisan measure to combat opioid abuse to attend a Republican Presidential debate. 

March 9: Rubio was one of only two Republican senators to not vote on the cloture motion for the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act because he was speaking at a “nearly empty” campaign rally for himself in Florida. 

March 7: Rubio missed the cloture vote on Grassley Substitute Amendment to the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act to, yet again, campaign for himself in Florida.

March 3: Rubio did not vote on an amendment to CARA to strengthen consumer education on the dangers of opioid abuse and addiction. Instead, No-Show Marco participated in the Republican Presidential primary debate held in Detroit where he and Donald Trump “traded insults over their manhood.”

March 2: Rubio missed votes on four amendments to the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, including a vote on an amendment adding $600 million to fund the measure, to vote for himself for president.  

February 29: Rubio missed a vote on the motion to proceed to the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act to campaign for himself in Georgia. 

December 3, 2015: Even before CARA, Rubio voted against a measure adding $15 billion to anti-drug efforts that would be paid for by ending tax breaks for millionaires and corporate offshoring.