The Subcommittee on Health, chaired by Rep. Joe Pitts (R-PA), has scheduled a hearing for Thursday, October 8, 2015, at 10:15 a.m. in room 2322 of the Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing is entitled, “Examining Legislative Proposals to Combat our Nation’s Drug Abuse Crisis." Subcommittee members will review a series of bipartisan bills to address the growing threat of drug abuse. The Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee has held five hearings over the past year and a half in an effort to better understand state and federal efforts to address this growing and complex crisis happening in communities across the country.
H.R. 2536, Recovery Enhancement for Addiction Treatment Act (TREAT Act), authored by Rep. Brian Higgins (D-NY), Rep. Richard Hanna (R-NY), Rep. Paul Tonko (D-NY), and Rep. John Katko (R-NY)
H.R. 2536 would lift the existing 100 patient cap on the nation’s 30,000 physicians who have waivers to prescribe buprenorphine to opioid addicted individuals. Additionally, the TREAT Act would provide prescribing privileges to nurse practitioners and physicians assistance and require an examination of how this legislation impacts treatment access and drug diversion.
H.R. 2805, the Heroin and Prescription Opioid Abuse Prevention, Education, and Enforcement Act of 2015, authored by Rep. Susan Brooks (R-IN) and Rep. Joseph Kennedy (D-MA)
H.R. 2805 would, among other things, establish a pain management best practices task force, establish a national prescription drug abuse education and awareness campaign, and create naloxone demonstration programs.
H.R. 2872, Opioid Addiction Treatment Modernization Act, authored by Rep. Larry Bucshon, M.D. (R-IN) and Rep. Steve Womak (R-AR)
H.R. 2872 would require all forms of FDA-approved medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid addiction to be made available in federally-regulated Office-Based Opioid Treatment programs (OBOT). This bill would ensure that both opioid relapse prevention medication and opioid maintenance treatments are provided to patients based on their individual needs. Additionally, treatment plans that incorporate overdose and relapse prevention will be required in all OBOTs.
H.R. 3014, Medical Controlled Substances Transportation Act of 2015, authored by Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX)
H.R. 3014 would amend the Controlled Substances Act to allow registered physicians to transport and administer controlled substances to patients at other practice settings and disaster areas if the physician enters into an agreement with the Drug Enforcement Agency.
H.R. 3537, Synthetic Drug Control Act of 2015, authored by Rep. Charlie Dent (R-PA), Rep. James Himes (D-CT), Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), and Rep. David Jolly (R-FL)
H.R. 3537 would schedule certain designer drugs (phenylalkylamines) in schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. H.R. 3537 would help stop the sale of deadly synthetic drugs.
Draft legislation authored by Rep. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM)
The Improving Treatment for Pregnant and Postpartum Women Act would create a pilot program within the existing Residential Treatment for Pregnant Women and Postpartum Women (PPW) grant program to allow states to provide outpatient substance abuse treatment, prevention, and recovery support services to pregnant and postpartum women.
Draft legislation authored by Rep. John Sarbanes (D-MD)
The Co-Prescribing to Reduce Overdoses Act would expand access to opioid overdose reversal drugs, such as naloxone, to at-risk patients as well as promote the development of overdose reversal prescribing guidelines.as they are posted. See Also
* #SubHealth Continues Review of Bipartisan Bills to Combat Growing Threat of Drug Abuse
