House committee approves AHA-backed bills to prevent opioid deaths, dependency

The House Energy and Commerce Committee today approved two additional AHA-supported bills as part of its legislative package to address the opioid epidemic. The bills would establish federal grants to implement co-prescribing of overdose reversal drugs in areas experiencing significant opioid abuse and deaths (H.R. 3680), and reauthorize residential treatment programs for pregnant and postpartum women and provide grants for states to address opioid dependency in infants (H.R. 3691). The committee yesterday approved five other AHA-supported bills to address the opioid crisis. The House bills could be reconciled later this year with the Senate-passed Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (S. 524), also supported by the AHA.