One of today’s foremost challenges is tackling the opioid crisis impacting communities across the country. BPC Action advocates for actionable bipartisan solutions to address this problem. Only through a sustained effort can policymakers turn the tide of the epidemic and help the millions of people who are touched by this crippling public health crisis.
Alongside BPC’s Governors’ Council and health experts, BPC Action has released a series of recommendations and are calling on Congress and the administration to act and implement change around this important issue.
Recommendations to Address the Opioid Epidemic
Four Key Areas to Address from BPC’s Governor’s Council:
- Curb illicit supply
- Curb unnecessary prescription opioid supply
- Improve treatment for substance use disorders and promote recovery
- Educate America
Help Rural Areas Affected by the Opioid Crisis:
- Ensure funding of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Adminstration (SAMHSA)’s Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment grant program
- Address the shortage of behavioral health care professionals needed to treat substance use disorders
- Require holders of a DEA controlled substances license to take a course in proper opioid prescribing and treating substance use disorders
Address the Impact of Opioid and Substance Use Disorders on Young Children and Families:
- Align Title IV-E of the Social Security Act (Federal Foster Care Payments) with Child Abuse and Prevention Treatment Act Requirements
- Require the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to identify and share model strategies
- Require SAMHSA to encourage and provide guidance on how the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Block Grant can be used to address treatment and recovery service needs
- Amend Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
- Authorize a targeted campaign through Medicaid encouraging evidence-based prenatal care and treatment for women
Letters from BPC's Governors' Council
Letter to Gov. Christie and the President’s Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis
Former Governors Mike Beebe (AR), Steven Beshear (KY), Jim Douglas (VT), Chris Gregoire (WA), and Linda Lingle (HI), sent a letter of recommendations to the White House and to the Chair of the Commission, Gov. Chris Christie.
Their recommendations center on three main themes: curb the supply of opioids, both prescribed and illegally trafficked; support access to treatment and support recovery; and address the stigma attached to those suffering from substance use disorders by promoting evidence-based policies.
Letter to Appropriations Committee Chairmen Thad Cochran and Rodney Frelinghuysen and Ranking Members Patrick Leahy and Nita Lowey
Former Governors Mike Beebe (AK), Steven Beshear (KY), Jim Douglas (VT), Chris Gregoire (WA), Linda Lingle (HI), and Dave Heineman (NE), sent a letter of additional recommendations to Senate and House Appropriations Committee Chairmen Cochran and Frelinghuysen and Ranking Members Leahy and Lowery.
Their recommendations targeted FY2018 and FY2019 spending bills and centered on: enhancing federal coordination, treatment, prevention, interdiction, recovery supports, and data.
Letter from BPC's Health Program Directors
Letter to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch and Ranking Member Ron Wyden
BPC’s health program directors G. William Hoagland, Katherine Hayes, Janet Marchibroda, and Anand Parekh, M.D. sent a letter to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Hatch and Ranking Member Wyden of recommendations detailing how the Medicare and Medicaid programs can effectively support pain management and prevent and treat substance use disorders.
Letter to Senate HELP Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander and Ranking Member Patty Murray
BPC’s health program directors G. William Hoagland, Katherine Hayes, Janet Marchibroda, and Anand Parekh, M.D. sent a letter to Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Hatch and Ranking Member Wyden providing input on their proposed legislation, the Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018. This legislation includes more than 40 proposals, developed with input from over seven months of bipartisan hearings, and was approved unanimously by the Senate HELP Committee in April 2018.
Left to right: Former Governors Jim Douglas (VT) and Mike Beebe (AR) discuss America’s opioid crisis
with BPC’s Chief Medical Advisor Anand Parekh, M.D.