Comprehensive Response to Fentanyl-Related Substances and Fentanyl-Laced Substances Act

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3570 To provide public awareness and outreach regarding the dangers of fentanyl, to expand the grants authorized under the Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Grant Program, to expand treatment and recovery services for people with opioid addictions, and to increase and to provide enhanced penalties for certain offenses involving counterfeit pills. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 22, 2023 Ms. JACKSON LEE (for herself, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mrs. BEATTY, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Mr. HORSFORD, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Mrs. CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK, and Mr. PAYNE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subse- quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To provide public awareness and outreach regarding the dan- gers of fentanyl, to expand the grants authorized under the Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Grant Program, to ex- pand treatment and recovery services for people with opioid addictions, and to increase and to provide en- hanced penalties for certain offenses involving counterfeit pills. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:22 Jun 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3570.IH H3570 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 3570 IH SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Comprehensive Re- 2 sponse to Fentanyl-Related Substances and Fentanyl- 3 Laced Substances Act’’. 4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 5 Congress finds the following: 6 (1) The United States is in the midst of the 7 worst opioid epidemic in history. 8 (2) Illicit fentanyl is typically mixed into heroin 9 or pressed into counterfeit pills made to look like 10 controlled prescription drugs such as oxycodone, 11 hydrocodone, and Xanax. 12 (3) From September 29 through December 15, 13 2021, the DEA seized more than 1,500 pounds of 14 substances containing fentanyl and 8.4 million 15 fentanyl-laced, fake prescription pills. The seizures 16 were directly linked to at least 39 overdose deaths 17 and included at least 76 cases that involved buying 18 and selling drugs on social media apps. Over the 19 course of that year, the DEA seized over 15,000 20 pounds of substances containing fentanyl and 20.4 21 million fake pills, with roughly four out of every 10 22 pills containing lethal doses of fentanyl. 23 (4) The widespread availability of illicit 24 fentanyl, the proliferation of counterfeit pills resem- 25 bling prescription drugs but containing illicit 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:22 Jun 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3570.IH H3570 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 3570 IH fentanyl or other illicit drugs, and the ease of pur- 1 chasing pills through social media have increased 2 fatal overdose risk among adolescents. 3 (5) According to the Centers for Disease Con- 4 trol, overdose deaths reached a historic high of more 5 than 90,000 drug overdose deaths in 2020, a 31 6 percent increase compared with the previous year 7 and in 2021, there were more than 106,000 reported 8 drug overdose deaths in the U.S., with deaths involv- 9 ing synthetic opioids (primarily fentanyl) numbering 10 70,601. 11 (6) Between 2019 and 2021, more than 2,200 12 adolescents overdosed, 96 percent of whom were be- 13 tween the ages of 15 and 19. Fentanyl was involved 14 in 84 percent of the deaths. While counterfeit pill 15 evidence was present in 25 percent of adolescent 16 overdose deaths, this is likely an underestimate be- 17 cause pills present at the scenes of the overdose 18 deaths were not always tested. 19 (7) Many overdose deaths are preventable with 20 public health interventions such as education, harm 21 reduction, and treatment access. 22 (8) Public education campaigns can teach teen- 23 agers, parents, and others on the dangers of 24 fentanyl and counterfeit pills and educating individ- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:22 Jun 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3570.IH H3570 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HR 3570 IH uals on mitigating practices can be beneficial, in- 1 cluding emphasis on not initiating drug use, not 2 using drugs while alone, using fentanyl test strips, 3 and having overdose reversal drugs readily available. 4 (9) Opioid antagonists, such as naloxone, can 5 be used during emergencies to reverse opioid 6 overdoses and are effective at preventing fatal drug 7 overdoses. 8 (10) The Centers for Disease Control and Pre- 9 vention reported that despite an increase in prescrip- 10 tions for emergency opioid antagonists, not enough 11 of the medication is getting into the hands of those 12 who need it most. 13 (11) Expanding access to emergency opioid an- 14 tagonists and encouraging people to obtain emer- 15 gency opioid antagonists are in the best interest of 16 the health and safety of the public. 17 (12) Increasing access to medications like meth- 18 adone and buprenorphine that effectively treat opioid 19 use disorder can save lives. 20 (13) Greater access to drug detection tools such 21 as fentanyl strips are a low-cost method of helping 22 prevent drug overdoses and reducing harm. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:22 Jun 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3570.IH H3570 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HR 3570 IH SEC. 3. COMPREHENSIVE OPIOID ABUSE GRANT PROGRAM. 1 Section 3021 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control 2 and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10701(a)) is 3 amended— 4 (1) in subsection (a), by adding at the end the 5 following: 6 ‘‘(11) Developing, implementing, or expanding a 7 program that provides training and resources for 8 teachers and other school officials in public or pri- 9 vate middle schools, high schools, institutions of 10 higher education (as such term is defined in section 11 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965), or area 12 career and technical education schools (as such term 13 is defined in section 3 of the Carl D. Perkins Career 14 and Technical Education Act of 2006) on— 15 ‘‘(A) carrying and administering an opioid 16 overdose reversal drug or device approved or 17 cleared by the Food and Drug Administration; 18 or 19 ‘‘(B) acquiring such a drug or device for 20 teachers and other school officials who have re- 21 ceived such training to so carry and administer 22 such a drug or device.’’; and 23 (2) by adding at the end the following: 24 ‘‘(g) PREFERENTIAL CONSIDERATION.—In awarding 25 grants under this part, the Attorney General may give 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:22 Jun 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3570.IH H3570 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HR 3570 IH preferential consideration to an application from an appli- 1 cant in a State that has in effect a law that exempts from 2 criminal and civil liability teachers and other school offi- 3 cials who carry or administer in good faith an opioid over- 4 dose reversal drug or device approved or cleared by the 5 Food and Drug Administration if trained to carry or ad- 6 minister such drug or device.’’. 7 SEC. 4. PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF FENTANYL- 8 LACED SUBSTANCE USE. 9 (a) PREVENTION.—The Secretary of Health and 10 Human Services, in consultation with the Attorney Gen- 11 eral, shall develop and implement a national strategy to 12 prevent the use of fentanyl-laced substances. The strategy 13 shall include the following elements: 14 (1) Education and outreach to the public about 15 the dangers of fentanyl-laced substances. 16 (2) Development of treatment programs for in- 17 dividuals who are addicted to fentanyl-laced sub- 18 stances. 19 (b) TREATMENT.—The Secretary of Health and 20 Human Services shall provide grants to States and local- 21 ities to support the development and implementation of 22 treatment programs for individuals who are addicted to 23 fentanyl-laced substances. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:22 Jun 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3570.IH H3570 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HR 3570 IH SEC. 5. ENHANCED LAW ENFORCEMENT EFFORTS. 1 (a) INCREASED RESOURCES.—The Attorney General 2 shall increase the resources available to law enforcement 3 agencies to combat the trafficking of fentanyl-laced sub- 4 stances. The Attorney General shall prioritize the fol- 5 lowing activities: 6 (1) Investigation and prosecution of individuals 7 who traffic fentanyl-laced substances. 8 (2) Disruption of the supply chain for fentanyl- 9 laced substances. 10 (3) Prevention of the importation of fentanyl- 11 laced substances into the United States. 12 (b) INTERAGENCY COORDINATION.—The Attorney 13 General shall establish an interagency task force to coordi- 14 nate the efforts of Federal, State, and local law enforce- 15 ment agencies to combat the trafficking of fentanyl-laced 16 substances. 17 SEC. 6. RESEARCH. 18 The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 19 conduct research on the following topics: 20 (1) The effects of fentanyl-laced substances on 21 human health. 22 (2) The development of new treatments for in- 23 dividuals who are addicted to fentanyl-laced sub- 24 stances. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:22 Jun 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3570.IH H3570 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •HR 3570 IH (3) The best practices for preventing the use of 1 fentanyl-laced substances. 2 SEC. 7. INCREASE IN PUNISHMENT. 3 Section 303(b) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cos- 4 metic Act (21 U.S.C. 333(a)) is amended by adding at 5 the end the following: 6 ‘‘(9)(A) Notwithstanding subsection (a)(1), any 7 person who violates subsection (a), (b), (c), or (g) of 8 section 301 with respect to any drug, if such viola- 9 tion results in— 10 ‘‘(i) serious bodily injury, shall be impris- 11 oned not more than 10 years, fined not more 12 than $1,000,000, or both; or 13 ‘‘(ii) death, shall be imprisoned for any 14 term of years or for life, fined not more than 15 $5,000,000, or both. 16 ‘‘(B) Notwithstanding subsection (a)(2), any 17 person who violates subsection (a), (b), (c), or (g) of 18 section 301 with respect to any drug with the intent 19 to defraud or mislead, if such violation results in— 20 ‘‘(i) serious bodily injury, shall be impris- 21 oned not more than 20 years, fined not more 22 than $5,000,000, or both; or 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:22 Jun 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3570.IH H3570 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9 •HR 3570 IH ‘‘(ii) death, shall be imprisoned for any 1 term of years or for life, fined not more than 2 $10,000,000, or both. 3 ‘‘(C) Any person who violates subsection (a), 4 (b), (c), or (g) of section 301 with respect to any 5 drug promoted or sold online shall, in addition the 6 punishment provided for such violation, be sentenced 7 to a term of imprisonment of not more than 5 8 years.’’. 9 SEC. 8. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 10 It is the sense of Congress that fentanyl deaths 11 should be addressed by— 12 (1) increasing funding for prevention and treat- 13 ment programs, including— 14 (A) programs that provide education and 15 treatment for people who are at risk of opioid 16 addiction or overdose; and 17 (B) school-based programs, community 18 outreach programs, and treatment centers; 19 (2) expanding access to naloxone (a medication 20 that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose) 21 such as by making naloxone available over-the- 22 counter or by providing subsidies for its purchase; 23 (3) cracking down on the trafficking of 24 fentanyl, including— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:22 Jun 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3570.IH H3570 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10 •HR 3570 IH (A) increased efforts both domestically and 1 internationally; 2 (B) increased funding for law enforcement 3 agencies; 4 (C) increased penalties for fentanyl traf- 5 ficking; and 6 (D) working with other countries to stop 7 the flow of fentanyl across borders; 8 (4) improving data collection and analysis, in- 9 cluding the improvement of Federal data collection 10 and analysis on fentanyl deaths, to better under- 11 stand the scope of the problem and identify effective 12 prevention and treatment strategies; and 13 (5) supporting research on new treatment op- 14 tions, including— 15 (A) support for research on new treatment 16 options for opioid addiction and overdose; and 17 (B) funding for research on new medica- 18 tions, new delivery methods, and new ap- 19 proaches to treatment. 20 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:22 Jun 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H3570.IH H3570 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB