VIDEO: Shea-Porter Secures Opioid Treatment Funding Source for At-Risk Youth
Congresswoman’s Opioid Treatment Provision Sent to House Floor in Bipartisan Vote
WASHINGTON, DC — Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter (NH-01) today announced the inclusion of her language authorizing the use of grants to fund opioid use disorder treatment for at-risk youth during a House Education and Workforce Committee markup. The Committee’s bipartisan membership then reported H.R.1809, the Juvenile Justice Reform Act of 2017, which now includes Shea-Porter’s language, to the House floor for a vote.
“My home state finds itself on the front line in the nationwide battle against the heroin, fentanyl, and prescription opioid epidemic, and we all know that turning the tide will require an array of efforts, including connecting young people with evidence-backed care,” said Shea-Porter to the Committee. “That’s why this language is so important – it gives us one more tool to fight this public health crisis.”
“I want to thank you, Madam Chair, and your staff for working with Ms. Shea-Porter to improve youth access to substance abuse prevention and treatment services, an important improvement over last year’s bill that will assist localities in combating the opioid epidemic,” said Committee Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03).
Shea-Porter cited New Hampshire’s high rates of youth substance misuse to her colleagues to explain the urgent need for facilitating access to treatment. As a member of the House Education and Workforce Committee, Shea-Porter is working to ensure that Committee legislation supports New Hampshire in its fight against the opioid crisis. In March, she offered aMotion to Recommit on the House floor that would require association health plans to provide coverage for substance use disorder treatment, as well as an amendment in Committee to defend Granite Staters’ access to substance use disorder treatment against the Republican health care bill’s proposed repeal of Medicaid expansion as well as mental health and substance use parity protections.
SHEA-PORTER’S FULL REMARKS
“I think many of us are aware that Title III of this bill is based on the model outlined in Ranking Member Scott’s Youth Promise Act, legislation I’m very proud to have cosponsored in three previous Congresses. I applaud and thank the Ranking Member for his tireless effort on this.
“I would also like to thank the Ranking Member, Chairwoman Foxx, and the committee staff for working with me to ensure that substance use disorder treatment services are included alongside the many other important services that can be supported by the grants made available under Title III.
“An August 2016 report by the New Hampshire Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Services referenced data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health in highlighting that ‘New Hampshire has some of the highest rates of substance misuse by youth and young adults.’
“My home state finds itself on the front line in the nationwide battle against the heroin, fentanyl, and prescription opioid epidemic, and we all know that turning the tide will require an array of efforts, including connecting young people with evidence-backed care. That’s why this language is so important – it gives us one more tool to fight this public health crisis.”
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