The Washington Post reports the Senate “passed the final version of a sweeping opioids package and will send it to the White House just in time for lawmakers to campaign on the issue before the November midterm elections.” The bill “creates, expands and reauthorizes programs and policies across almost every federal agency,” with the aim of addressing “different aspects of the opioid epidemic, including prevention, treatment and recovery.” The Post calls it “one of Congress’s most significant legislative achievements this year.”

USA Today mentions that the National Institute of Drug Abuse has “reported that more than 115 people a day die from opioid overdose and 21 percent to 29 percent of patients prescribed opioids for chronic pain misuse them.” The legislation would require the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to implement programs for prevention and treatment, and require the Food and Drug Administration “to update information on nonaddictive treatments for chronic pain and addiction,” among other measures.

The Hill reports Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said the bill is “set to deliver major relief to the American communities that have been decimated by the scourge of substance abuse and addiction.” The Hill says that in the House, “Republican incumbents in tough reelection races touted their work on the bill, while in the Senate more Democratic incumbents lauded the progress.”

From the news release of the American Association for Justice.