The Indiana General Assembly continues to fight the opioid epidemic facing our state using a three-pronged approach – prevention, treatment and enforcement. Below are some of the bills brought forth this session to help put an end to drug abuse in our state.
State Senator Randy Head highlighted some of the bills put forth to find the opioid epidemic. The senator said, “To help prevent current and potential opioid abusers from obtaining more prescription drugs, Senate Bill 221 would require doctors to check INSPECT, Indiana’s prescription monitoring database, prior to issuing opioid prescriptions.”
To ensure opioid abusers have access to the treatment they need Senator Head said, “House Bill 1007, which I sponsored, would allow the Division of Mental Health and Addiction to approve nine additional opioid treatment programs, which would be operated by hospitals. By expanding these programs, all Hoosiers would be within a one-hour drive from a treatment program.”
To increase penalties for those feeding addiction, House Bill 1359, which is a part of Governor Holcomb’s legislative agenda, would increase criminal penalties for drug dealers if a sale leads to a fatal overdose.
Senator Head closed his comments by saying, “If signed into law, I hope these bills will help curb the drug abuse problem in our communities and state.”
