Trone Bill to Support Families Impacted by Addiction Passes House Floor
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Hannah Muldavin, hannah.muldavin@mail.house.gov
Trone Bill to Support Families Impacted by Addiction Passes House Floor
Trone bill passes one month after CDC data highlighted that nearly 90,000 Americans died from drug overdose last year
To watch Congressman Trone’s floor speech about H.R. 433, click here.
Washington, DC – Today, Congressman David Trone (D-MD) applauded the passage of the bipartisan bill H.R. 433, the Family Support Services for Addiction Act, that he introduced along with Congressman Dan Meuser (R-PA) in January. The legislation would create a $25 million grant program over five years to help national and local nonprofit organizations provide family support services for substance use disorder treatment. The bill will now head to the Senate before going to the President’s desk for signature.
The legislation passes the House just one month after data released from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revealed that nearly 90,000 Americans died from a drug overdose between September 2019 and September 2020 — a record breaking 29% increase in just one year. Unfortunately, the pandemic has exacerbated America’s addiction crisis and the need for more support services is growing.
Congressman Trone is all too familiar with the need for more support services for the families of people with substance use disorder. Yesterday, he spoke on the House floor about how substance use disorder has impacted his own family.
“In 2016, my nephew Ian lost his life to an overdose after years of struggling with addiction, but he didn’t fight this battle alone. My wife and I were with him every step of the way, but getting him the help he needed was hard for us to do, even with the resources we had at our disposal,” said Congressman David Trone. “Our story is not unique. For most families, it’s nearly impossible to navigate our behavioral health care system, and COVID-19 has made it even harder. I want to thank Congressman Dan Meuser, who has been a phenomenal partner to get this bill passed across the House floor for a second time.”
“The plight of addiction continues to affect communities across the country and in Pennsylvania, especially during the pandemic,” said Congressman Dan Meuser. “The Family Support Services for Addiction Act would provide grants to community organizations that offer critical support to families navigating complex insurance coverage and treatment options, better allowing them to assist their loved one on the road to recovery. I want to thank Congressman Trone for his exceptional work on this legislation and look forward to the day when it is signed into law.”
Organizations around the country help millions of families affected by substance use disorder every day. These groups offer services to families that are often not provided by treatment facilities nor covered by insurance. However, most of these organizations receive little to no government support. The Family Support Services for Addiction Act will help close that gap.
Administered through the Department of Health and Human Services, the Family Support Services for Addiction Act would provide national and local community programs that offer family support services $25 million in grants over five years. Family support services include caregiver peer support, education and training, systems navigation for families trying to access treatment and other resources, counseling services, support groups for those in crisis and for those who have lost loved ones, and skill-building.
Evidence has shown that when families are involved in their loved one’s treatment and recovery, outcomes improve. Those with family members engaged in programs and services such as Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT) – an evidence-based model that teaches families the skills to have productive and effective conversations and interactions with their child – show a higher treatment retention rate.
The Family Support Services for Addiction Act has been endorsed by the Partnership to End Addiction (formerly Center on Addiction + Partnership for Drug-Free Kids), the Kennedy Forum, Faces & Voices of Recovery, Addiction Policy Forum, the American Psychological Association, Attack Addiction (Delaware), Not One More (Alabama), Parents Helping Parents (Oklahoma), Hope Sheds Light (New Jersey), Not One More (Pennsylvania), and Drug Free Workplace PA and Family Education (Pennsylvania).
To read bill text, click here.
To read a bill summary, click here.
To watch Congressman Trone’s floor speech about H.R. 433, click here.
Congressman David Trone was elected in 2018 to serve Maryland’s Sixth Congressional District, where his top priority in Congress is ending the opioid and addiction epidemic that has devastated the entire nation.
In 2016, Trone lost his nephew Ian to a fentanyl overdose after working closely with Ian for over five years while he was in and out of recovery. After extensive first-hand experience supporting a loved one with substance use disorder, Trone was able to understand the challenges and barriers for many to recovery.
In his first term in Congress, Trone founded the Freshmen Working Group on Addiction, a bipartisan group of 64 freshmen lawmakers dedicated to ending the addiction epidemic in the country, later merging the group to create the new Bipartisan Addiction and Mental Health Task Force. Trone was also appointed to the Commission on Combating Synthetic Opioid Trafficking by Speaker Pelosi.
Trone serves on the Appropriations, Veterans’ Affairs, and Joint Economic Committees in the 117th Congress and previously served on the Education and Labor and Foreign Affairs Committees.
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