Methamphetamine Response Act of 2020

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 8210 To designate methamphetamine as an emerging threat, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SEPTEMBER 11, 2020 Mr. COX of California (for himself, Mr. CURTIS, Mr. TRONE, Mr. SAN NICO- LAS, and Mr. CASE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To designate methamphetamine as an emerging threat, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Methamphetamine Re- 4 sponse Act of 2020’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) Methamphetamine poses a significant public 8 health and safety threat and qualifies as an emerg- 9 ing drug threat, as defined in section 702 of the Of- 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:48 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8210.IH H8210 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 8210 IH fice of National Drug Control Policy Reauthorization 1 Act of 1998 (21 U.S.C. 1701). 2 (2) Methamphetamine treatment admissions in- 3 creased from 15.1 percent of all admissions in 2008 4 to 23.6 percent in 2017, the latest year for which 5 data is available. 6 (3) During the timeframe described in para- 7 graph (2)— 8 (A) methamphetamine-related treatment 9 admissions among women increased from 19.2 10 percent of all drug-related treatment admissions 11 to 28.3 percent; and 12 (B) heroin use among those admitted for 13 methamphetamine-related treatment increased 14 from 5.3 percent to 23.6 percent. 15 (4) By the end of 2019, methamphetamine 16 availability, use, purity, and potency had increased 17 nationally, as street-level prices declined. 18 (5) Methamphetamine use is a nationwide issue. 19 Its use remains widespread in Midwest and Western 20 States and is becoming increasingly prevalent in 21 Northeastern States. 22 (6) Methamphetamine is the drug most often 23 associated with violent crime. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:48 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8210.IH H8210 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 8210 IH (7) According to the Centers for Disease Con- 1 trol and Prevention— 2 (A) between 2018 and 2019, drug overdose 3 deaths involving methamphetamine and other 4 stimulants increased by 27 percent nationally; 5 (B) the number of deaths described in sub- 6 paragraph (A) increased in 27 of the 38 States 7 that provide drug-specific overdose data to the 8 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 9 and 10 (C) between January 2019 and January 11 2020, among 36 States and the District of Co- 12 lumbia, suspected stimulant overdoses, includ- 13 ing methamphetamine, treated in emergency de- 14 partments increased by 23 percent. 15 (8) Methamphetamine-related overdose deaths 16 will likely continue to increase in 2020, due in part 17 to the ongoing COVID–19 pandemic, which makes 18 obtaining treatment for substance use disorders, in- 19 cluding methamphetamine use, more difficult. 20 (9) The increase in methamphetamine use and 21 the negative respiratory and pulmonary health ef- 22 fects associated with its use has caused the National 23 Institute on Drug Abuse to warn clinicians to be 24 prepared to monitor adverse effects when treating 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:48 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8210.IH H8210 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 8210 IH individuals using methamphetamine who also have 1 COVID–19. 2 (10) Since the onset of COVID–19 in the 3 United States, the number of law enforcement and 4 first responder agencies entering data into nation- 5 wide overdose mapping applications to track real- 6 time suspected overdoses, including methamphet- 7 amine overdoses, has increased. 8 (11) In the first 9 months of fiscal year 2020, 9 there was a 52-percent increase in the amount of 10 methamphetamine seized by U.S. Customs and Bor- 11 der Protection. 12 (12) Public reports indicated that Mexican car- 13 tels may be stockpiling money and illicit drugs, in- 14 cluding methamphetamine, on both sides of the 15 Southwest Border and that the Drug Enforcement 16 Administration is preparing to respond to any poten- 17 tial surge in supply. 18 (13) Intentional preparation to counter any 19 surges in production, distribution, and use are essen- 20 tial in lowering methamphetamine-related overdose 21 deaths and substance use disorders. 22 SEC. 3. DECLARATION OF EMERGING THREAT. 23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Congress declares methamphet- 24 amine an emerging drug threat, as defined in section 702 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:48 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8210.IH H8210 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 8210 IH of the Office of National Drug Control Policy Reauthor- 1 ization Act of 1998 (21 U.S.C. 1701), in the United 2 States. 3 (b) REQUIRED EMERGING THREAT RESPONSE 4 PLAN.—Not later than 90 days after the date of enact- 5 ment of this Act, the Director of the Office of National 6 Drug Control Policy shall establish and implement an 7 Emerging Threat Response Plan that is specific to meth- 8 amphetamine in accordance with section 709(d) of the Of- 9 fice of National Drug Control Policy Reauthorization Act 10 of 1998 (21 U.S.C. 1708(d)). 11 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:48 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H8210.IH H8210 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS