Does There Need to be a Comprehensive Strategy for Addressing Opioid and Heroin Abuse? (H.R. 953)

What is H.R. 953?

(Updated August 13, 2017)

This bill would provide a comprehensive solution to the problem of opioid and heroin addiction by reforming prevention and law enforcement strategies, and expanding evidence-based treatment. It would expand education surrounding the prescription of pain medication and addiction to those substances, while also providing grants to numerous entities at the state and local level.

The following groups would receive grants through this legislation via the Dept. of Justice (DOJ):

• States, local governments, and nonprofit groups to expand educational efforts to prevent abuse of opioids and heroin, understand addiction as a disease, and promote treatment and recovery;

• Organizations that have received a grant implement community-wide strategies that address local drug crises;

• States, local governments, Indian tribes, and nonprofit groups to provide a treatment alternative to incarceration for people who otherwise would be in the juvenile or criminal justice system if they have a substance abuse disorder or mental illness and are approved to participate in such a program;

• State, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies to create a demonstration program to prevent overdose deaths from opioids and heroin. Additional grants would be available for providing medication assisted treatment programs, prescription medication disposal sites, and educational programs for incarcerated offenders;

• Veterans treatment court programs could be established or expanded, as could peer to peer services for qualified veterans. Other programs that provide treatment, rehabilitation, legal, and transitional services to incarcerated veterans could also receive grants;

• States to prepare a comprehensive plan for and implement an integrated opioid abuse response initiative. State substance abuse and criminal justice agencies could obtain funding to jointly address the use of opioids and heroin among pregnant and parenting female offenders to promote public health, family permanence, and general well-being.

An interagency task force composed of officials from the Dept. of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and other stakeholder groups would be established. This task force would be required to develop best practices for pain management and the prescription of pain medication. The task force would then outline a strategy for disseminating this information and provide Congress with a report.

HHS would establish a program to identify collateral consequences for people with drug convictions and in treatment for a substance abuse disorder, and whether those consequences prevent those individuals from resuming their personal and professional lives. The Dept. of Education would also be directed to remove questions about convictions for the possession or sale of illegal drugs from federal student loan applications.

Argument in favor

Dealing with opioid and heroin abuse requires a multi-faceted strategy — including preventive education, reforms for prescribing pain medication, and treating addiction. This bill does all that, and lays out a plan that involves stakeholders at the federal, state, and local level.

Argument opposed

Opioid and heroin addiction are problems that can’t be sufficiently mitigated through the best efforts of stakeholders at the federal, state, and local level. The federal government would be better served to focus these resources on one aspect of the problem, like education.

Impact

People dealing with addiction to opioids or heroin, or who have been convicted of selling or possessing drugs and are in treatment; juvenile and criminal justice centers; relevant local, state, and tribal agencies; and relevant federal agencies.

Cost of H.R. 953

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI) believes that the U.S. needs to take action to prevent and reduce the impact of addiction:

“Too many Americans are falling into the addiction trap. It must be addressed effectively and expeditiously. With this legislation, we have an opportunity to build on proven methods that enable law enforcement to respond to this epidemic and support long-term recovery.”

Currently, this bill has the bipartisan support of 22 lawmakers in the House, including 12 Democrats and 10 Republicans. Its Senate counterpart has 15 cosponsors, six of whom are Republicans while the remaining nine are Democrats.

Groups like the American Correctional Association, the American Psychological Association, and the DEA Educational Foundation — among others — have expressed support for this legislation.

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. Based on a 2004 survey, nearly half of all federal inmates sought treatment for drug addiction while incarcerated, while the proportion of state inmates who did the same was slightly lower at 40 percent.

• Sponsoring Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI) Press Release
• Section-by-Section Summary
• Business Journal Daily
• Letter of Support (In Favor)
• National Institutes of Health (Context)