On Wednesday, October 24 U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) announced that three of her bipartisan bills to combat the opioid epidemic have been signed into law as part of the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment (SUPPORT) for Patients and Communities Act.
The Synthetic Abuse and Labeling of Toxic Substances (SALTS) Act, which Klobuchar introduced with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), will make it easier to prosecute the sale and distribution of “analogue” drugs, which are synthetic substances that are substantially similar to illegal drugs.
The Synthetics Trafficking & Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act, which Klobuchar introduced with Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH), will help stop dangerous synthetic drugs like fentanyl and carfentanil from being shipped through our borders to drug traffickers here in the United States.
The Eliminating Kickbacks in Recovery Act, which Klobuchar introduced with Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), will help crack down on health care facilities or providers that try to game the system to take advantage of vulnerable patients.
“Every day, families across Minnesota and the country lose loved ones to the opioid epidemic,” Klobuchar said. “These bills will help crack down on the sale of analogue drugs, stem the flow of synthetic drugs crossing our borders in the mail, and protect patients seeking treatment from being scammed. By signing this bipartisan legislation into law, fewer families will have to experience the devastating effects of addiction.”
As the former Hennepin County Attorney, Klobuchar has long led local and national efforts to curb drug abuse and help people overcome addiction. In February, Klobuchar and Senators Portman, Whitehouse (D-RI) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) introduced the bipartisan Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) 2.0 Act.
The bill would increase the funding authorization levels for the CARA programs enacted in 2016 and put in place additional policy reforms to help combat the opioid epidemic.
To build on the monumental first step of CARA, Klobuchar also introduced the Prescription Drug Monitoring Act, which would require the use of strong prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) in all states that receive certain federal funding to combat opioid abuse and also requires states to make their PDMP data available to other states.
Last year, she and other senators introduced the Budgeting for Opioid Addiction Treatment (LifeBOAT) Act, which would establish a reliable funding stream to provide and expand access to substance abuse treatment.
Leave a Reply