Senator Hassan's Bipartisan Bill to Support Law Enforcement in Combating the Opioid Epidemic Passes Senate Judiciary Committee

WASHINGTON – The Senate Committee on the Judiciary today passed bipartisan legislation introduced by Senator Maggie Hassan as part of her efforts to combat the deadly fentanyl, heroin, and opioid epidemic in New Hampshire and across the country. 

The Committee voted to approve the bipartisan Preventing Drug Diversion Act, which would crack down on bad actors in the pharmaceutical industry by strengthening the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) system for addressing suspicious orders of opioid-based prescription drugs from drug distributors. It also requires the DEA to provide more information to the states to help them better enforce state laws. The measure was cosponsored by Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX).

“Ensuring that the DEA has the tools it needs to crack down on suspicious orders of opioids and to hold bad actors in the pharmaceutical industry accountable for putting our people and communities at risk is critical to stemming – and ultimately reversing – the deadly tide of the fentanyl, heroin, and opioid epidemic in New Hampshire and across the country,” Senator Hassan said. “The bipartisan Preventing Drug Diversion Act takes important steps to help make that happen, and I thank Chairman Grassley for his support of this bill and for bringing it before the Judiciary Committee. I look forward to continuing to work across the aisle to keep moving this bill forward so that it becomes law as quickly as possible.”

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