Last
week, the House of Representatives voted 396-14 to approve bipartisan
legislation (H.R. 6) that would serve as a Senate vehicle for many of the
House-passed bills to combat the opioid crisis and includes a number of American
Hospital Association (AHA)-supported provisions. Additionally, the House
separately approved two key AHA-supported
bills. H.R. 5797, as amended, would allow states to receive federal
matching funds for up to 30 days per year for services provided to adult
Medicaid beneficiaries for opioid and cocaine use disorder in an Institution
for Mental Disease and expand treatment coverage to individuals suffering from
cocaine use disorder, while H.R. 6082 would align 42 CFR Part 2 regulations
with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act to allow health
care providers to responsibly share substance use disorder treatment
information. The White House has expressed support for all three bills. The
Senate is expected to consider opioid legislation as early as mid-July.