WASHINGTON, DC - The House Energy and Commerce Committee, chaired by Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), today approved 10 bills as part of a multi-day markup of 22 bills. Most of today’s bills will help address the opioid and drug abuse crisis facing our nation. The committee also passed a bill to streamline EMT requirements for veterans with relevant training, and a bill to improve pipeline safety.
Today’s votes advance the committee’s ongoing efforts to address the opioid drug abuse epidemic, and these bills will now be ready for consideration by the full House of Representatives.
“Opiate-related overdoses have become the number one cause of injury related to death in Michigan, as well as nationwide. Nearly every 12 minutes, someone dies of a drug overdose in the U.S. We’ve lost a lot of good kids in Michigan. It’s a frightening reality - and it’s only getting worse," stated Chairman Upton. “While there is no one solution, these bills represent good steps in addressing a problem that has grown rapidly."
The committee approved the following #SubHealth bills (in order by consideration):
H.R. 4641, to provide for the establishment of an inter-agency task force to review, modify, and update best practices for pain management and prescribing pain medication, and for other purposes - Authored by committee members Rep. Susan Brooks (R-IN) and Rep. Joseph Kennedy (D-MA), this legislation would establish an inter-agency task force to review, modify, and update best practices for pain management and how pain medication is prescribed.
H.R. 4978, the Nurturing and Supporting Healthy Babies Act - Authored by Rep. Evan Jenkins (R-WV) and Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-IL), this bipartisan legislation would require the Comptroller General of the United States to issue a report one year after enactment on Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS). Also passing with the bill was an amendment offered by Health Subcommittee Chairman Joseph Pitts (R-PA) and Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY), which corrects an error in current law by exempting abuse-deterrent formulations (ADF) of prescription drugs from the definition of “line extension" when calculating Medicaid rebates, thus helping incentivize the development of ADF to combat opioid abuse. The cost of this change was offset by implementing a policy in the President’s FY2017 Budget that would prevent the public disclosure of predictive algorithms used to identify fraud in Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP programs, a policy idea that Rep. Bilirakis (R-FL) first introduced last Congress.
H.R. 1818, the Veteran Emergency Medical Technician Support Act of 2015 - Authored by committee members Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) and Rep. Lois Capps (D-CA), this bipartisan legislation (which passed the House last Congress) would create a demonstration program to streamline emergency medical technician state requirements and procedures for veterans who have already completed military emergency medical technician training. Also passing with the bill was an amendment offering a technical correction to the bill title.
H.R. 4981, the Opioid Use Disorder Treatment Expansion and Modernization Act - Authored by committee members Rep. Larry Bucshon, M.D. (R-IN) and Rep. Paul Tonko (D-NY), this legislation would amend the Controlled Substances Act to expand access to medication-assisted treatment, while ensuring that patients receive the full array of quality evidence-based services and minimizing the potential for drug diversion.
H.R. 4969, the John Thomas Decker Act - Authored by Rep. Pat Meehan (R-PA), Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI), and Rep. Marc Veasey (D-TX), this legislation would amend the Public Health Service Act to direct HHS to study what information and resources are available to youth athletes and their families regarding the dangers of opioid use and abuse, non-opioid treatment options, and how to seek addiction treatment. HHS would then be required to report its findings and work with stakeholders to disseminate resources to students, parents, and those involved in treating a sports related injury. Also passing with the bill was an amendment offering a technical correction to the bill.
H.R. 4599, the Reducing Unused Medications Act of 2016 - Authored by Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA) and Rep. Steve Stivers (R-OH), this legislation would amend the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to clarify when a prescription for a drug listed on Schedule II of the CSA may be partially filled.
H.R. 4976, the Opioid Review Modernization Act - Authored by Rep. Sean Maloney (D-NY) and committee member Rep. Leonard Lance (R-NJ), this legislation would require the FDA to work closely with expert advisory committees before making critical product approval and labeling decisions, and to make recommendations regarding education programs for prescribers of extended-release and long-acting opioids.
H.R. 4982, Examining Opioid Treatment Infrastructure Act of 2016 - Authored by Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL) and full committee Ranking Member Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), this legislation would require the Comptroller General of the United States to issue a report to Congress on substance abuse treatment availability and infrastructure needs throughout the United States. This report shall include an evaluation of various substance abuse treatment settings including inpatient, outpatient, and detoxification programs. Also passing with the bill were two amendments, one offered by Rep. David McKinley (R-WV) and one offered by Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK). Rep. McKinley’s amendment examines barriers to accessing real-time data on overdoses, and Rep. Mullin’s amendment studies access to treatment in the Indian health program.
H.R. 3250, the DXM Abuse Prevention Act of 2015 - Authored by committee members Rep. Bill Johnson (R-OH) and Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA), this legislation would prohibit the sale of a drug containing dextromethorphan (DXM) to an individual under 18, unless the individual has a prescription or is actively enrolled in the military and place restrictions on distribution of bulk DXM. DXM is commonly found in cough syrup.
The committee’s markup will continue tomorrow by considering the three additional opioid-related bills, H.R. 3680, the Co-Prescribing to Reduce Overdoses Act of 2015 ; H.R. 3691, the Improving Treatment for Pregnant and Postpartum Women Act of 2015 ; and H.R. 4586, Lali’s Law. The committee will also consider 9 bills from the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology.
Electronic copies of the bills can be found on the Energy and Commerce Committee’s website here. A background memorandum, amendments, and votes will be available at the same link. See Also
* Energy and Commerce Committee Vote on H.R. 4978, H.R. 4641, H.R. 3680, H.R. 3691, H.R. 1818, H.R. 4981, H.R. 3250, H.R. 4969, H.R. 4586, H.R. 4599, H.R. 4976, H.R. 4982, H.R. 4889, H.R. 4167, H.R. 4111, H.R. 4190, H.R. 3998, H.R. 2031, H.R. 2589, H....
