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Washington, DC– This week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed 39 bills to combat the nationwide opioid epidemic, including Congressman Brett Guthrie’s (KY-02) Comprehensive Opioid Recovery Centers Act (H.R. 5327).

The Comprehensive Opioid Recovery Centers Act would establish a grant program for treatment facilities to offer all FDA-approved treatments for opioid use disorder, as well as to provide residential rehabilitation, recovery housing, and community-based and peer recovery support services. The new comprehensive centers would give patients options and establish a model for future treatment facilities. The Comprehensive Opioid Recovery Centers Act passed the House by a vote of 383-13.

“People become addicted to opioids for different reasons, so we cannot expect every person to respond to the same treatment,” said Guthrie. “Most treatment centers currently only offer one type of treatment, limiting the patients who use that facility to just one option that may or may not work for them. I introduced the Comprehensive Opioid Recovery Centers Act so that patients will have a range of options when they seek treatment for opioid use disorder.”

As vice chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Health Subcommittee, Congressman Guthrie worked on 28 additional committee bills to combat the opioid crisis. The committee’s bills focus on four areas: prevention, treatment and recovery, protecting communities, and fighting the illicit fentanyl trade.

The House passed several other bills addressing different aspects of the opioid crisis, including four bills from Guthrie’s other committee, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. The House also passed Congressman Andy Barr’s (KY-06) bill to help people in recovery find housing, the Transitional Housing for Recovery in Viable Environments Act (H.R. 5735).

“Combating our nation’s opioid crisis has been one of my top priorities in Congress, and this effort has seen bipartisan success when it comes to improving health care for Kentuckians,” said Guthrie. “Our work in the House this week is a major step in the right direction towards helping people who are struggling with addiction and preventing the spread of opioid abuse in our communities. I hear about this issue everywhere I go in Kentucky, and I am proud of my colleagues for coming together on this issue to pass meaningful reform in a bipartisan way. I look forward to continuing to work on this issue next week and beyond.”

The House will continue to vote on bills to combat the opioid crisis next week. More information about the floor schedule can be found here.

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