Subscribe to receive our Floor Reports covering all the action on the Texas House and Senate floor!
Relating to programs and initiatives to prevent and respond to opioid addiction, misuse, abuse, and overdose and identify and treat co-occurring substance use disorders and mental illness.
Under the bill, the Department of State Health Services would create a public awareness campaign. This effort would also authorize the Commissioner of the Health and Human Service Commission to provide opioid antagonists (a drug that acts on neurological receptors), under a grant program for the purpose of administering to individuals who are experiencing an overdose.
In addition, the bill would allow for the Medicaid reimbursement for certain medications for individuals who are affected by opioid substance abuse. Lastly, the bill would require medical professionals of a pain management clinic (example: specialized anesthetic care) to encourage the participation in the program in order to identify patients who are struggling with substance abuse.
Texas Action opposes HB 3285 because the bill violates our principle of limited government. This bill includes provisions that would grow the cost and size of government in an area that would best be served by the free market and non-profit entities.
In addition to growing state government, the bill fails to provide an adequate fiscal note. According to TIME, Nacan (Naloxone), the drug that is most commonly used to inject an individual who has experienced a drug overdose, costs on average $140 for a kit. In the event of emergency personal attending to multiple overdoses, it is apparent that these costs would add up very quickly.
For these reasons, we remain opposed to HB 3285.