The House of Representatives has made a major step forward in giving the public more information on just how bad the opioid crisis really is. The Indexing Narcotics, Fentanyl and Opioids Act compels the Health and Human Services Department (HHS) to create a online information resource that will combine all total public information from federal, state, and local governments and organizations in one place. The bill would give HHS 6 months to compile the data and build the site, as well as have them regularly update it. The bill was approved unanimously and will join the 25 other bills currently on their way to the Senate floor.
The House on Tuesday passed legislation that would make government data on the opioid epidemic more widely available and accessible to groups fighting drug abuse around the country.
The Indexing Narcotics, Fentanyl and Opioids Act would require the Health and Human Services Department to create an online information dashboard that aggregates publicly available data on substance abuse from federal, state and local governments and organizations. The site would also detail federal initiatives to curb opioid abuse and provide information on addiction treatment and alternative pain management practices.
The dashboard would house data on general opioid abuse prevention, treatment and recovery, and include subsets of treatment and prevention information for different regions and demographic populations. If passed, the bill would give HHS six months to build the platform and require the agency to periodically update data and program information. Click Here to Read More
*House chamber image via Wikipedia*
