Portman heroin bill passes Senate Judiciary Committee

U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) announced that his bill to address the heroin epidemic in Ohio has passed the Senate Judiciary Committee and is now ready for a vote in the full Senate.

The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, which is the only bipartisan and comprehensive bill moving forward in the Senate, will provide a series of incentives and resources designed to encourage states and local communities to pursue a full array of proven strategies to combat addiction – not just one or two. The bill was authored by Portman and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and cosponsored by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) and 25 others.
 
“This is an important step in the fight to save our friends, neighbors, and family members struggling with addiction,” Portman stated. “This is the only bipartisan legislation that includes a comprehensive and evidence-based approach to help communities combat this epidemic. It has significant support from both sides of the aisle, as well as from doctors, nurses, first responders, those in recovery, and other experts in the field. The heroin epidemic in Ohio has reached crisis levels and I will continue to work to get this bill over the finish line.”
 
The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (S. S. 524) is designed to ensure that federal resources are provided to evidence-based prevention, treatment and recovery programs that have proven effective in local communities. Specifically, it will:
 
• Expand prevention and educational efforts — particularly aimed at teens, parents and other caretakers and aging populations — to prevent the abuse of opioids and heroin and to promote treatment and recovery. 

• Expand the availability of naloxone to law enforcement agencies and other first responders to help in the reversal of overdoses to save lives. 

• Expand resources to identify and treat incarcerated individuals suffering from addiction disorders promptly by collaborating with criminal justice stakeholders and by providing evidence-based treatment.

• Expand disposal sites for unwanted prescription medications to keep them out of the hands of children and adolescents.

• Launch an evidence-based opioid and heroin treatment and interventions program. While there are medications that can help treat addiction, there is a critical need to get the training and resources necessary to expand treatment best practices throughout the country.

• Strengthen prescription drug monitoring programs to help states monitor and track prescription drug diversion and to help at-risk individuals access services.

The legislation is supported by the National District Attorneys Association, the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD), Faces and Voices of Recovery, the National Council for Behavioral Health and the Major County Sheriffs' Association, among others.
 
After the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved his bill to address the heroin epidemic, Portman delivered remarks on the Senate floor urging his colleagues to support the bill.

Portman will be in Cincinnati Friday to discuss his continued push to pass his bill which will help to save lives.
 
Excerpts of Portman’s remarks are below.

“[I’d like to] thank my colleagues on the Judiciary Committee for reporting out legislation today on a bipartisan basis. In fact, there was not a single no vote …. That doesn’t happen around here very often. The reason it happened is this way is that the legislation before the committee called CARA, the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, is legislation that has been thoughtfully crafted with Republicans and Democrats alike.
 
“We want to come up with legislation that’ll actually make a difference in our states and around the country with what is sadly a growing crisis.
 
“We lost over 2,400 fellow Ohioans last year to overdose deaths. It’s now the number one cause of accidental deaths in America. More people are dying from overdoses than they are from car accidents. This is an issue that affects every single one of us. It has no zip code.
 
“When I am back home talking about this, it’s hard for me to find a group I’m meeting with that doesn’t bring this up.
 
“The grip of addiction from opiates … is very, very, very hard to address. And that is why our legislation is so important.”