On Air Now

Bustos introduces legislation for opioid treatment in rural communities

A bill aimed to help battle the growing fight with opioid addiction in rural communities passed the house this week, it was introduced in April by Congresswoman Cheri Busots.

The bill aims to create a special registration process to allow medical practitioners to utilize telemedicine to help meet with and prescribe medicine to battle the opioid epidemic sweeping across the country.

Current federal law prohibits a doctor from dispensing controlled substances through the internet without evaluating the patient in-person.

Representative Bustos says that the opioid crises is worse in rural America, saying that drug related deaths are 45% higher.

“When I travel around my district, a vast district – 7,000 square miles, 14 counties,” Bustos said. “I’m told time and time again that access to treatment remains one of the largest barriers to recovery in many of the small towns and the rural communities that I serve.”

She says that because only 55-percent of rural counties have substance abuse treatment facilities, telemedicine is vital for combating the opioid epidemic.

“We don’t have enough doctors. We don’t have enough treatment centers. And if we don’t have those things too many people don’t have a chance.”

The Special Registration for Telemedicine Clarification Act instructs the Attorney General to take the necessary steps to allow for the prescription of medication-assisted treatment (MAT) and other controlled substances via telemedicine.

H.R. 5483 is one of twelve bills that have gone through Congress in this session targeting the opioid problem plaguing America.

The bipartisan bill passed the house on Tuesday, and now goes before the Senate.

Recommended Posts

Loading...

Share Contact

contact-chris-mcintyre-qr-code