Hatch, Wyden Praise Introduction of Medicare, Medicaid & Human Services Bills to Address Opioid Epidemic

Finance Committee Leaders Support Advancing Legislation to Address Opioid Crisis

WASHINGTON – Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) today praised the introduction of 22 bipartisan bills to address the nation’s opioid crisis:

“Through stakeholder input, hearings, and other member engagement, our committee has spent the first half of the year examining potential solutions to help curb the opioid crisis plaguing our nation,” Hatch and Wyden said in a joint statement. “This week many of our bipartisan ideas came to fruition with the introduction of 22 bills that are being led by Finance Committee members. This marks a significant step in the committee’s legislative process, laying the groundwork for a constructive bipartisan path to confront this very real and serious epidemic. With the release of these smart and effective policy solutions, we are committed to convening a markup in the coming weeks to further examine these recommendations, move them through the committee in regular order, and put them on track to becoming law and making a difference in the lives of Americans across the country.”

Click here for a list of bill numbers, names and text, as well as a list of Senate Finance Committee sponsors. Additional policies may be considered for a markup in the coming weeks.

Background
In February, Hatch and Wyden requested feedback on how to improve the response to the epidemic in Medicare, Medicaid and human services programs. The full letter can be found here.

In April, Hatch and Wyden convened a hearing to examine how to tackle opioid and substance use disorders. Additionally, the Bipartisan Budget Act included Hatch and Wyden’s Family First legislation and funding for early childhood home visiting programs to help address the opioid epidemic.

The Senate Finance Committee, the committee with the largest jurisdiction in either House of Congress, oversees more than 50 percent of the federal budget and has jurisdiction over large portions of the American healthcare system, including Medicare, Medicaid and CHIP.

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