State Opioid Response Grant Authorization Act of 2021
Floor Speech
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Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2379) to amend the 21st Century Cures Act to reauthorize and expand a grant program for State response to the opioid use disorders crisis, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 2379
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``State Opioid Response Grant Authorization Act of 2021''. SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAM FOR STATE AND TRIBAL RESPONSE TO OPIOID AND STIMULANT USE AND MISUSE.
Section 1003 of the 21st Century Cures Act (42 U.S.C. 290ee-3 note) is amended to read as follows: ``SEC. 1003. GRANT PROGRAM FOR STATE AND TRIBAL RESPONSE TO OPIOID AND STIMULANT USE AND MISUSE.
``(a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services (referred to in this section as the `Secretary') shall carry out the grant program described in subsection (b) for purposes of addressing opioid and stimulant use and misuse, within States, Indian Tribes, and populations served by Tribal organizations and Urban Indian organizations.
``(b) Grants Program.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of appropriations, the Secretary shall award grants to States, Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and Urban Indian organizations for the purpose of addressing opioid and stimulant use and misuse, within such States, such Indian Tribes, and populations served by such Tribal organizations and Urban Indian organizations, in accordance with paragraph (2).
``(2) Minimum allocations; preference.--In determining grant amounts for each recipient of a grant under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall--
``(A) ensure that each State receives not less than $4,000,000; and
``(B) give preference to States, Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and Urban Indian organizations whose populations have an incidence or prevalence of opioid use disorders or stimulant use or misuse that is substantially higher relative to the populations of other States, other Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, or Urban Indian organizations, as applicable.
``(3) Formula methodology.--
``(A) In general.--Before publishing a funding opportunity announcement with respect to grants under this section, the Secretary shall--
``(i) develop a formula methodology to be followed in allocating grant funds awarded under this section among grantees, which includes performance assessments for continuation awards; and
``(ii) not later than 30 days after developing the formula methodology under clause (i), submit the formula methodology to--
``(I) the Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives; and
``(II) the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate.
``(B) Report.--Not later than two years after the date of the enactment of the State Opioid Response Grant Authorization Act of 2021, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a report that--
``(i) assesses how grant funding is allocated to States under this section and how such allocations have changed over time;
``(ii) assesses how any changes in funding under this section have affected the efforts of States to address opioid or stimulant use or misuse; and
``(iii) assesses the use of funding provided through the grant program under this section and other similar grant programs administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
``(4) Use of funds.--Grants awarded under this subsection shall be used for carrying out activities that supplement activities pertaining to opioid and stimulant use and misuse, undertaken by the State agency responsible for administering the substance abuse prevention and treatment block grant under subpart II of part B of title XIX of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-21 et seq.), which may include public health-related activities such as the following:
``(A) Implementing prevention activities, and evaluating such activities to identify effective strategies to prevent substance use disorders.
``(B) Establishing or improving prescription drug monitoring programs.
``(C) Training for health care practitioners, such as best practices for prescribing opioids, pain management, recognizing potential cases of substance use disorders, referral of patients to treatment programs, preventing diversion of controlled substances, and overdose prevention.
``(D) Supporting access to health care services, including--
``(i) services provided by federally certified opioid treatment programs;
``(ii) outpatient and residential substance use disorder treatment services that utilize medication-assisted treatment, as appropriate; or
``(iii) other appropriate health care providers to treat substance use disorders.
``(E) Recovery support services, including--
``(i) community-based services that include peer supports;
``(ii) mutual aid recovery programs that support medication-assisted treatment; or
``(iii) services to address housing needs and family issues.
``(F) Other public health-related activities, as the State, Indian Tribe, Tribal organization, or Urban Indian organization determines appropriate, related to addressing substance use disorders within the State, Indian Tribe, Tribal organization, or Urban Indian organization, including directing resources in accordance with local needs related to substance use disorders.
``(c) Accountability and Oversight.--A State receiving a grant under subsection (b) shall include in reporting related to substance use disorders submitted to the Secretary pursuant to section 1942 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-52), a description of--
``(1) the purposes for which the grant funds received by the State under such subsection for the preceding fiscal year were expended and a description of the activities of the State under the grant;
``(2) the ultimate recipients of amounts provided to the State; and
``(3) the number of individuals served through the grant.
``(d) Limitations.--Any funds made available pursuant to subsection (i)--
``(1) shall not be used for any purpose other than the grant program under subsection (b); and
``(2) shall be subject to the same requirements as substance use disorders prevention and treatment programs under titles V and XIX of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290aa et seq., 300w et seq.).
``(e) Indian Tribes, Tribal Organizations, and Urban Indian Organizations.--The Secretary, in consultation with Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and Urban Indian organizations, shall identify and establish appropriate mechanisms for Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and Urban Indian organizations to demonstrate or report the information as required under subsections (b), (c), and (d).
``(f) Report to Congress.--Not later than September 30, 2024, and biennially thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives, and the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate, a report that includes a summary of the information provided to the Secretary in reports made pursuant to subsections (c) and (e), including--
``(1) the purposes for which grant funds are awarded under this section;
``(2) the activities of the grant recipients; and
``(3) for each State, Indian Tribe, Tribal organization, and Urban Indian organization that receives a grant under this section, the funding level provided to such recipient.
``(g) Technical Assistance.--The Secretary, including through the Tribal Training and Technical Assistance Center of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, shall provide States, Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and Urban Indian organizations, as applicable, with technical assistance concerning grant application and submission procedures under this section, award management activities, and enhancing outreach and direct support to rural and underserved communities and providers in addressing substance use disorders.
``(h) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Indian tribe.--The term `Indian Tribe' has the meaning given the term `Indian tribe' in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304).
``(2) Tribal organization.--The term `Tribal organization' has the meaning given the term `tribal organization' in such section 4.
``(3) State.--The term `State' has the meaning given such term in section 1954(b) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-64(b)).
``(4) Urban indian organization.--The term `Urban Indian organization' has the meaning given such term in section 4 of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act.
``(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) In general.--For purposes of carrying out the grant program under subsection (b), there is authorized to be appropriated $1,750,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2027, to remain available until expended.
``(2) Federal administrative expenses.--Of the amounts made available for each fiscal year to award grants under subsection (b), the Secretary shall not use more than 20 percent for Federal administrative expenses, training, technical assistance, and evaluation.
``(3) Set aside.--Of the amounts made available for each fiscal year to award grants under subsection (b) for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall--
``(A) award 5 percent to Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and Urban Indian organizations; and
``(B) of the amount remaining after application of subparagraph (A), set aside up to 15 percent for awards to States with the highest age-adjusted rate of drug overdose death based on the ordinal ranking of States according to the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.''.
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Mr. PALLONE. 2379.
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Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2379, the State Opioid Response Grant Authorization Act of 2021.
The substance use and opioid crisis continues to be a public health emergency and has evolved into a devastating dual threat when combined with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Opioids are the leading cause of drug overdose deaths in the United States. Tragically, last year, more than 93,000 Americans died from an opioid overdose. That is the highest 12-month death toll since the beginning of the opioid epidemic.
Now, experts suspect that the COVID-19 pandemic only exacerbated this terrible record last year. Overall, it is estimated that more than 20 million Americans have a substance use disorder. While treatment and services are available, many do not have access to or are not aware of the care in their communities.
H.R. 2379 basically supports our ongoing work to combat the opioid crisis, and the legislation enhances our efforts in the 21st Century Cures Act and the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act. It does this by authorizing the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration State Opioid Response grant program, better known as SAMHSA's SOR grant program.
The bill also aligns the authorization with authorities included in the 21st Century Cures Act.
Although the SAMHSA grant program has been funded through the appropriations process since 2018, it does not have a statutory authorization. This legislation provides that important authorization and ensures future funding.
Today, the SOR grants are used to enhance prevention and recovery activities across the States, including support services to address stimulant misuse and use disorders. These grants also reduce barriers to medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder, which is critical to addressing the treatment gap and reducing the number of overdose deaths.
This bill also provides Congress more information and transparency about existing funding, including the formula used to make allocations to States. This information will allow us to examine how changes to these allocations impact the progress States are making to address the opioid crisis.
It is important for this program to direct resources to communities most in need or where surges in opioid or stimulant use are occurring, and this information will help us make sure that resources are getting to where they are needed the most.
I want to thank the sponsor of the bill, the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Trone), for his leadership on this issue. I also want to thank my Republican committee colleagues for their support on this legislation, as we continue our work to address the substance use crisis in this country.
Madam Speaker, the bill unanimously passed the House last year. I urge my colleagues to support it once again today. I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Trone), the author of the bill.
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Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Deutch).
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Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline).
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Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, again, this is a very important bill addressing the opioid epidemic with these various grant programs.
Madam Speaker, I would ask for support on a bipartisan basis, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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