In D.C., Republicans are now in power of both chambers of Congress and the White House. But Democrats and those on the right are finding some common ground. A bipartisan bill to combat the opioid epidemic cleared the House last week.
The bill’s full name is the Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl (or HALT) Act. It means traffickers of fentanyl-related substances would face tougher prison sentences. Southwest Virginia Congressman Morgan Griffith sponsored the bill.
“The bill aims to curb overdose deaths by permanently scheduling fentanyl analogs, or fentanyl related substances, as schedule 1 substances,” Griffith said told lawmakers on the House floor on Feb. 5. “This will strengthen law enforcement’s ability to prosecute fentanyl traffickers and act as a deterrent.”
The Drug Enforcement Administration temporarily placed illicit fentanyl into schedule 1 in 2018, a classification that means the drug has no medicinal use and has a high potential for abuse. Congress repeatedly extended that temporary classification, which was set to expire at the end of March. The HALT act makes the move permanent.
The bill, cosponsored by Ohio Congressman Bob Latta, has wide support from law enforcement organizations.
Opponents argue it pushes people into long prison sentences, without combating the root causes of the opioid epidemic, like mental health, and addiction treatment.
In the past, illicit drug makers have been able to find loopholes to avoid stiff prison penalties by making small changes to the chemical structure of a drug, so it’s no longer categorized the same way.
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, China is a primary producer of chemicals to make illicit fentanyl. Griffith says he wants to see more legislation to stop the flow of these drugs into the country.
“This bill is a critical step in combating the opioid epidemic in our country, because China and Mexico are heavily involved in this business,” Griffith said.
Regular fentanyl, prescribed by doctors as a pain medicine, is a schedule II drug and would not be affected by the bill. The HALT act also streamlines registration for researchers to conduct studies on fentanyl related substances.
The bill only had one Republican voting against it, and 98 Democrats supported it as it passed the House. A nearly identical bill, also with bipartisan support, was introduced in the Senate.
