Norcross, Lawler, Tonko introduce bipartisan bill to increase treatment access for opioid use disorder

WASHINGTON — Congressmen Donald Norcross (NJ-01), Mike Lawler (NY-17), and Paul Tonko (NY-20) today introduced the bipartisan Modernizing Opioid Treatment Access Act 2.0 MOTAA 2.0). The bill, which has been endorsed by more than 50 healthcare and recovery organizations, would establish a safe process for individuals suffering from opioid use disorder (OUD) to access methadone through their local pharmacy.

Methadone is one of the two primary OUD treatments recommended by the World Health Organization. It reduces all-cause mortality by over 50 percent and has been effectively prescribed worldwide for roughly 50 years. Yet while pharmacies can easily distribute methadone for pain relief, OUD patients can only access the treatment under direct supervision in an opioid treatment program (OTP) – facilities that are unavailable in approximately 80 percent of counties across the United States.

Notably, nearly one-third of OTPs are owned by private equity firms – a higher percentage than practically any other field of medicine and a share that is still growing. This trend has not increased the supply of methadone and has shown few tangible benefits, and private equity has financed staunch opposition to reforms that would boost treatment access.

“The fact that only a fraction of people can access the most effective, readily-available treatment for opioid addiction is simply a policy choice. And it’s a bad choice that’s needlessly costing lives,” Norcross said. “It’s beyond time that our rules catch up with the science – and that we put the needs of Americans over the private-equity monopolies who profit from addiction services.”

“The opioid epidemic has devastated families across New York and our nation, showing the need to make proven, lifesaving treatment more accessible,” Lawler said. “This bipartisan legislation gives qualified addiction specialists the ability to prescribe methadone for opioid addiction through local pharmacies, helping patients access care closer to home safely. Recovery should be within reach for every American who is ready to take that step.”

“For decades, methadone has been a safe, proven, and effective treatment that saves lives and helps millions living with the disease of addiction,” Tonko said. “Congress must do all in its power to ensure our communities can access these evidence-based treatments. I’m proud to join my colleagues in this bipartisan bill that will save lives by helping individuals find and follow the path to recovery.”

In addition to allowing board-certified addiction physicians and psychiatrists to prescribe methadone and pharmacies to dispense it, the MOTAA 2.0 adds new provisions to the legislation that Norcross previously led in 2023. These changes include more safety guardrails and flexibility for the Department of Health and Human Services to authorize future licensed providers without Congress needing to pass a separate law.

Senators Ed Markey (D-MA) and Rand Paul (R-KY) are leading companion legislation in the Senate. The more than 50 organizations currently endorsing the MOTAA 2.0 include:

A New PATH (Parents for Addiction Treatment & Healing), AIDS United, American Academy of Family Physicians, American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists, American College of Academic Addiction Medicine, American College of Emergency Physicians, American College of Medical Toxicology, American College of Osteopathic Emergency Physicians, American Medical Association, American Osteopathic Academy of Addiction Medicine, American Osteopathic Association, American Pharmacists Association, American Psychological Association Services, American Society of Addiction Medicine, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Association for Behavioral Health and Wellness, Association for Multidisciplinary Education and Research in Substance Use and Addiction (AMERSA), Big Cities Health Coalition, Boston Medical Center, Broken No More, Center for Addiction Science, Policy, and Research (CASPR), Doctors for Drug Policy Reform, Drug Policy Alliance, Faces & Voices of Recovery, Georgia Council for Recovery, HIV Alliance, Inseparable, International Certification and Reciprocity Consortium (IC&RC), Legal Action Center, Mass General Brigham, Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association (MHA), Massachusetts Society of Addiction Medicine, Mental Health America, Mobilize Recovery, National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers, National Association of Community Health Centers, National Behavioral Health Association of Providers, National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, National Coalition to Liberate Methadone, National Commission on Correctional Health Care, National Community Pharmacists Association, National Rural Health Association, Opioid Task Force of Franklin County and the North Quabbin Region, Overdose Prevention Initiative, Partnership to End Addiction, Penn Medicine's Center for Addiction Medicine & Policy, Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative, R Street Institute, Shatterproof, SMART Recovery, Talbott Legacy Centers, The Kennedy Forum, Veterans Inc., WellSpan Health, Yale Program in Addiction Medicine, and Young People in Recovery.

Full text of the legislation can be found here, and a one-pager by the American Society of Addiction Medicine can be found here.