Representatives Lamb and Grothman Bill to Create Opioid Task Force Passes House

(WASHINGTON, DC) – Today, the House passed H.R. 5891, the “Improving the Federal Response to Families Impacted by Substance Use Disorder Act,” bipartisan legislation introduced by Representatives Glenn Grothman (WI-06) and Conor Lamb (PA-18) that will establish and interagency task force to identify, evaluate and recommend ways in which the federal government can better coordinate responses to the opioid epidemic and carry out authorized duties. The bill passed with overwhelming bipartisan support by a vote of 409-8.

H.R. 5891 directly addresses the need to better assist and support families affected by addiction, and calls for a coordinated, collaborative, cross-agency approach to heroin addiction and substance abuse disorder. The proposed interagency task force will:

--Be comprised of members from across government agencies and solicit input from stakeholders, including frontline service providers, educators, researchers, early childhood experts, mental health professionals, and other relevant groups;

--Develop a government-wide strategy to respond to substance use disorder and opioid misuse;

--Evaluate and recommend opportunities for local and state level partnerships;

--Promote prevention, whole family, multi-generational, and community-based initiatives.

“Heroin and opioid addiction is a crisis in Western Pennsylvania, and I’m glad we’re doing something about it this week in Congress,” said Lamb. “Our bill will create a federal task force focused on improving the government’s response to this crisis, and ensures that we are learning from the experts on the front lines of his fight in our communities. We can’t put an end to the heroin epidemic in one week. But we are working together and getting things done this week, and passing this bipartisan bill is another step in the right direction.”

“One overdose is too many. These are preventable deaths of precious lives,” said Grothman. “I am determined to fight to put an end to the opioid crisis and believe this bill could be a turning point in the fight.”

Congressman Lamb is a member of the Bipartisan Heroin Task Force which is led by Representatives Tom MacArthur (R-NJ), Annie Kuster (D-NH), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), and Donald Norcross (D-NJ). The Bipartisan Heroin Task Force’s agenda includes commonsense, bipartisan legislation to address the opioid epidemic by supporting prevention, treatment, recovery, and law enforcement efforts.

The full text of H.R. 5891 is available here.