Federal lawmakers have introduced or revived several bills this year aimed at expanding access to addiction and mental health treatment, from new Medicare coverage for residential opioid treatment to permanent funding for community behavioral health clinics.
Here are four to know:
1. Congressman David Valadao, R-Calif., joined Reps. Lauren Underwood, D-Ill., Carol Miller, R-W.Va., and Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., in reintroducing the Residential Recovery for Seniors Act on July 6, which would authorize Medicare coverage for residential and inpatient treatment for opioid use disorder.
The legislation would create a new Medicare benefit covering residential treatment that meets American Society of Addiction Medicine standards. It would include low-intensity, high-intensity and medically managed residential treatment, as well as establish a fixed Medicare payment system for participating treatment providers.
Mr. Valadao said the bill is intended to address rising overdose deaths among older adults by expanding access to residential addiction treatment for Medicare beneficiaries. Medicaid already covers residential addiction treatment, while many Medicare beneficiaries lack coverage for those services.
2. Sens. Edward Markey, D-Mass., and Rand Paul, MD, R-Ky., on June 25 reintroduced legislation that would allow board-certified physicians to prescribe methadone for opioid use disorder and pharmacies to dispense the medication, according to a news release from Mr. Markey’s office.
The Modernizing Opioid Treatment Access Act would expand access to methadone, which is currently available to patients with opioid use disorder only through opioid treatment programs. Patients typically must travel to an opioid treatment program daily or nearly every day early in treatment and, on average, drive 4.5 times farther to reach one than a pharmacy, the release said.
The legislation builds on a version that passed the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions in December 2023 by allowing HHS to designate additional licensed providers who can prescribe methadone for opioid use disorder without additional legislation.
3. A bipartisan group of federal lawmakers in the House introduced the Ensuring Excellence in Mental Health Act to expand behavioral healthcare access.
The legislation was introduced by Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, Doris Matsui, D-Calif., Craig Goldman, R-Texas, Angie Craig, D-Minn., Mark Alford, R-Mo., Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., It would permanently authorize the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic model and allow states the option to implement it within their behavioral healthcare systems.
The bill aims to address gaps in care as demand for behavioral health services rises. CCBHCs provide a range of services, including 24/7 crisis care, outpatient mental health and substance use treatment, screening and diagnosis, and coordination with hospitals, law enforcement and veterans organizations.
The legislation would also establish a Medicare payment structure for CCBHCs, codify Medicaid payment systems, create an accreditation process and authorize expansion grants and data infrastructure for clinics.
A bipartisan group of senators introduced its own version of the Ensuring Excellence in Mental Health Act in December.
4. Lawmakers have introduced the Mental Health Workforce Act to address workforce shortages and expand diversity among mental health providers.
The bill aims to increase the number of providers and expand the pipeline of diverse professionals, according to a March 19 news release from the office of Rep. Troy Carter, D-La. It includes student loan forgiveness for individuals who attend Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions in exchange for a five-year service commitment after becoming licensed.
As part of the program, providers would be required to serve patients in health professional shortage areas. Federal data shows 92.3 million people lived in primary care health professional shortage areas as of Dec. 25.
The legislation also seeks to address disparities in access to mental healthcare. Data from the American Psychology Association shows psychologists were 85% white in 2011 and 80% white in 2021.
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