Cantwell Leads Colleagues in Calling for Urgent Hearing on Expanding Fentanyl Addiction Treatment Options
Medicaid patients are 4x more likely to overdose on opioids
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Last week, U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), sent a letter to the leaders of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance requesting a committee hearing on expanding access to evidence-based addiction treatment, especially FDA-approved medication-assisted treatment, through public programs like Medicaid.
“In recent years, fentanyl overdoses have risen at an alarming rate, and today every state is impacted by this epidemic. More than 112,000 Americans died from fatal overdoses in 2023 – the largest number in history – and public health experts say that fentanyl is now responsible for the majority of drug deaths,” said the senators. “… As members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, we believe that we have a duty to examine this crisis and find ways to reduce fentanyl overdoses and save lives. We must explore how we can leverage the jurisdictional power of our committee to provide more treatment options and capacity for all Americans.”
Medicaid patients are four times more likely to overdose on opioids compared to patients on commercial insurance. Medicare patients are also uniquely impacted by the opioid crisis, and a federal oversight report found that only 18% of Medicare enrollees struggling with addiction received recommended medication treatment.
As chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Sen. Cantwell has been a leader on legislation that reduces the quantity of illegal drugs entering the United States.
Over the past year, Sen. Cantwell held ten roundtables around Washington state with local leaders, first responders, health care providers, and folks with lived experience of addiction to learn about how the fentanyl crisis is hurting communities. More details about those roundtables are available HERE.
In March 2024, Sen. Cantwell voted in favor of a series of federal funding bills that will allocate $1.69 billion to combat fentanyl and other illicit drugs coming into the United States, including an additional $385.2 million to increase security at U.S. ports of entry.
In April 2024, Sen. Cantwell helped pass the FEND Off Fentanyl Act which will help U.S. government agencies disrupt opioid supply chains and penalize fentanyl traffickers. The new law also declares international trafficking of fentanyl – and the precursors used to make it – a national emergency.
Sen. Cantwell previously called for hearings in the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on how to address the fentanyl crisis in tribal communities. The Committee subsequently held two hearings; Sen. Cantwell invited Lummi Nation Chairman Anthony Hillaire to testify at the hearing on November 8, 2023, and invited Vanessa Waldref, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington to testify at the hearing on December 6, 2023.
Last week, on May 1, the committee also held a hearing on the Parity for Tribal Law Enforcement Act, Sen. Cantwell’s legislation to bolster Tribal law enforcement agencies through helping them hire and retain tribal law enforcement officers by raising their retirement, pension, death, and injury benefits to be on par with those of federal law enforcement officers.
Since August 2023, Sen. Cantwell has announced over $23 million in federal funding to help local and tribal communities in Washington state combat the fentanyl crisis.
A background document with Sen. Cantwell’s legislative history and actions is available HERE.
The full text of Sen. Cantwell’s letter is available HERE.
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