In the Bipartisan rare agreement, the House and Senate reach the compromise on the opioid bill

The United States Postal Service will need to start collecting information on international mailings, just as private carriers like Fed Ex and DHL must already do. At the end of this year, the postal service shall provide the name and address of the sender and the contents of the parcel, as described by the sender, for at least 70% of the totality products from China. He will have to provide information on all these shipments by the end of 2020.

The postal service could block or destroy shipments for which information is not provided.

Alternatives to opioids

The bill would provide funding for the research and development of new non-addictive painkillers. This would also allow the Food and Drug Administration to require that certain opioids be distributed in packaging that limits their potential for abuse, for example in blister packs providing only a few days of supply.

What is not in the bill

The absence of the final bill is a litigious provision that has nothing to do with opioids, but for which the pharmaceutical industry insisted. This would have softened the requirement that drug manufacturers start offering larger discounts next year to Medicare beneficiaries whose prescribed drug expenses are in a coverage gap called "the donut hole". ". the fierce opposition of consumer advocates and some congressmen.

According to many addiction treatment providers and researchers, there is also a significant investment in truly controlling overdose deaths and ensuring effective treatment on demand. As a model, they cite the Ryan White Care Act, a bipartisan bill passed by Congress in 1990 that provides billions of dollars in treatment and other support for people living with HIV. and AIDS, including antiretroviral drugs for anyone without insurance.

Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Elijah Cummings of Maryland, both Democrats, have proposed a bill inspired by the Ryan White Act, providing $ 100 billion over 10 years for drug and other forms of treatment. support. But the proposition is nowhere.

"Compared to our response to AIDS, it's a failure," said Keith Humphreys, a Stanford professor who advised the Senate and the House on their previous bills, of the new version. "The Republicans did not want to spend, so they agreed on all the second-level issues they could."

Yet, he adds, "if you look at the incredible dysfunction of Congress on everything, it's actually one of the few things they could do together as parties."