Florida Senator Bill Nelson to visit Jacksonville to address opiod crisis

Florida Senator Bill Nelson is addressing the opioids crisis-- and how it's impacting a growing number of newborns in Jacksonville.

Nelson will be at UF Health on Tuesday to talk to doctors in the neonatal intensive-care unit. Earlier this month, Action News Jax investigated local cases of drug addicted babies.

Action News Jax Tenikka Hughes met the family of a 1-year-old girl who was born six weeks premature and addicted to opioids.

Cases like hers have increased tenfold since 1995 in Florida, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports.

The increase is leading to a growing need for foster parents.

Cox Media Group