Bills
| 3.23.22

Do Physicians and Addiction Specialists Need to be Able to Treat More Opioid Addicts Every Year? (H.R. 2536)

Do you support or oppose this bill?

What is H.R. 2536?

(Updated March 12, 2018)

This bill, which is known as the TREAT Act, would increase the number of patients that a healthcare provider can treat per year in an addiction recovery program, in order to help reduce the prevalence of opioid addiction. Currently, providers are limited to treating 30 patients per year by the federal government, and this legislation would raise that cap to 100 patients annually.

Nurse practitioners and physician’s assistants would be allowed to treat up to 100 patients per year so long as they:

  • Are licensed in a state that already allows them to prescribe controlled substances;

  • Complete approved training on opioid addiction treatment;

  • Are supervised by a physician who is approved to prescribe opioid addiction medicine or are certified addiction treatment nurse practitioners that work with a physician in a “qualified practice setting” when state law allows it.

Certain physicians would be able to request that the 100 patient cap be lifted after one year so that they can treat as many patients for opioid addiction in a year as they want to. In order to be eligible for this cap to be lifted:

  • Physicians must be substance abuse treatment specialists as recognized by specific board or society certifications;

  • Non-specialist physicians must complete approved training and practice in a “qualified practice setting.” A qualified practice setting would be defined as clinics that have oversight, performance metrics, or quality review, or that are serving high-need populations.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) would be required to examine changes in:

  • Treatment availability and utilization;

  • Quality of treatment programs;

  • Integration with routine healthcare services;

  • Impact on state-level policies and legislation;

  • Use of nurse practitioner and physician’s assistant prescribers.

Argument in favor

Argument opposed

Impact

People addicted to opioids and receiving treatment for their addiction, physicians, nurses, and physician’s assistants who treat people for opioid addiction, and the GAO.

Cost of H.R. 2536

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Rep. Brian Higgins (D-NY) — the sponsor of this legislation — called for a response to the threat of opioid addiction and expanded access to treatment:

"Opioid abuse, while especially prevalent in Western New York, is a national epidemic that does not discriminate based on age or geography. Giving prescribers the proper training and tools to combat addiction is an important piece of the puzzle to recovery and saving lives."

The lead cosponsor of this bill's Senate companion, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), believes that:

“The TREAT Act will remove a roadblock to getting people the help they need to break the cycle of addiction and get on a path to recovery.”

Currently, this bill boasts seven cosponsors of a more bipartisan flavor, with four Republicans and three Democrats having expressed their support. In the Senate, it has seven cosponsors, with Sen. Paul being the only Republican.

Among the organizations that have expressed their support for this legislation are the American Medical Association, the Drug Policy Alliance, and the American Association of Nurse Practitioners.


Of Note: According to the American Society of Addiction Medicine, there are 1.9 million Americans who are abusing or dependent on prescription opioids, and another 517,000 who are addicted to heroin.

The National Institutes of Health has noted that Suboxone, which is one of the medications that would be more widely available if this bill were enacted, has proven to be effective in treating patients for opioid dependence.


Media:

Summary by Eric Revell
(Photo Credit: Flickr user Chris Yarzab)