Senate Bill Would Build on CARA Programs to Fight Opioid Crisis

Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) today introduced the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act 2.0, legislation that would increase funding authorization levels for CARA programs and implement additional policy reforms to combat the opioid crisis. According to the sponsors, the bill would authorize $1 billion in dedicated resources to evidence-based prevention, enforcement, treatment and recovery programs. It also would impose a three-day limit on initial opioid prescriptions for acute pain; make permanent a CARA provision that allows physician assistants and nurse practitioners to prescribe buprenorphine under the direction of a qualified physician; allow states to waive the limit on the number of patients a physician can treat with buprenorphine; and require physicians and pharmacists to use their state prescription drug monitoring program when prescribing and dispensing opioids, among other provisions. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee today held a hearing on the opioid crisis and the role of technology and data in preventing and treating addiction. In opening comments, Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) said the committee plans to markup legislation to address the opioid crisis as soon as the end of March.