Senate strongly passes bill to combat opioid drug epidemic
U.S. Sens. Mark Warner (D) and Tim Kaine (D) are hailing the March 9 passage of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA), a heroin and opioid addiction-combating measure approved by the Republican-led chamber 94-1.
CARA, should it make its way to law, would authorize more than $300 million over five years in federal grants to state and local programs aimed at bolstering treatment for addicts. The bill also intends to strengthen prescription drug monitoring programs and increases access to overdose-reversal drugs, like naloxone, for law enforcement and other first-responders.
U.S. Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-Va.-10) is one of 93 cosponsors of similar legislation awaiting action from the House.
Overdoses from heroin, prescription drugs and opioid pain relievers last year surpassed car accidents as the leading cause of injury-related death in America, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Sen. Kaine, who held a Senate field hearing on opioid addiction in Loudoun County last month, was one of 43 cosponsors of the bill.
Kaine successfully inserted an amendment to CARA that drew from his proposed Stopping Medication Abuse and Protecting Seniors Act. The amendment, according to Kaine's office, authorizes Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D prescription plans to utilize a patient review and restriction tool, or 'lock-in' measure, which Kaine says would help identify individuals at risk of addiction, connect them with resources, and restrict them to one pharmacy and one provider when accessing controlled substances.
“This bill will increase drug treatment services to help get people back on their feet and give first responders and law enforcement the resources they need to save lives,” Kaine said in a prepared statement. “I look forward to continue working in the Senate to advance commonsense legislation that can build on the measures in today’s bill.”
Overdose-reversal drugs like Naloxone are receiving strong reviews from law enforcement. Last month, a Loudoun County Sheriff's Office deputy saved a life in western Loudoun using naloxone.
Warner, who spoke to the bill on the Senate floor, touched on the importance of the life-saving drugs.
“This bill not only focuses on treatment and prevention,” Warner said, “but also recognizes the reality of this dire situation by expanding access to overdose-reversal drugs for first responders. While this is a good step forward, I hope Congress can continue to work together in a bipartisan way to ensure that this bill is fully funded so we can save lives and end this epidemic.”
Loudoun and the nation as a whole have seen sharp spikes in recent years in heroin- and opioid-related deaths. More than 47,000 people across the country died from opioid abuse in 2014, an all-time high.
Attorney General Mark Herring (D), whose office has toured the state to highlight the heroin and opioid crisis, praised the Senate's action.
