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 After months of wrangling, the Senate voted overwhelmingly on
Wednesday, 92-2, to pass the bill that has also been approved by the
U.S. House of Representatives.
The measure aims to help communities develop treatment and overdose
programs at a time when fewer than half the estimated 2.2 million
Americans who need help for opioid abuse are receiving it, according
to the U.S. Centers for Human and Health Services.
The White House said in a statement the bill "falls far short" of
the necessary funding, but Obama would sign it "because some action
is better than none."
Republican Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, a leading proponent of the
legislation, said that it marked "the first time that we’ve treated
addiction like the disease that it is, which will help put an end to
the stigma that has surrounded addiction for too long."
While its passage marked a rare bipartisan effort in this election
year, Democrats complained that it does not provide enough resources
to effectively address the drug problem.
"This bill is like a Hollywood movie set - something that appears
real on the surface but has no substance and no life behind its
facade," said Senator Charles Schumer of New York, the No. 3 Senate
Democrat.
U.S. deaths from drug overdoses hit a record high in 2014, propelled
by abuse of prescription painkillers and heroin, according to the
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
28,000 people died from opioid overdose in 2014. At least half, HHS
said, of those deaths involved a prescription opioid.
Among the common prescription drugs are oxycodone, hydrocodone, and
fentanyl that are used for pain treatment.
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Heroin-related deaths have also increased sharply, more than
tripling since 2010. In 2014, more than 10,500 people died from
heroin, the agency said.
The bill authorizes $181 million a year for new programs it creates.
Democrats said that with disagreements in Congress over next year's
funding for HHS, it was uncertain whether the money contained in the
bipartisan bill actually would be delivered.
They called on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican,
to back up this legislation with $600 million in immediate emergency
funds. Obama has requested $920 million for opioid treatment
programs over two years.
The bill, if enacted into law, also would provide new training for
emergency personnel in administering drugs to reverse opioid
overdoses and help communities purchase those drugs.
(Reporting By Richard Cowan; Additional reporting by Eric Beech;
Editing by Diane Craft and Andrew Hay)
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