Crapo, Shaheen Bill to Curb Veteran Overdoses Advances out of Committee

Washington, D.C.-Legislation led by U.S. Senators Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire) took a meaningful step forward. The bipartisan End Veterans Overdose Act, which seeks to help battle the ongoing substance use disorder crisis among veterans by increasing access to lifesaving overdose reversal agents, advanced out of the U.S. Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee by a unanimous vote. It now awaits consideration from the full U.S. Senate.

"Removing barriers to accessing opioid overdose reversal medications for veterans and their caregivers will help reduce the stigma around seeking treatment and save lives," said Crapo. "This bill builds upon existing efforts by the VA to address the opioid crisis, and the Committee's action today to move this critical bill forward recognizes the urgency of this issue."

"Anything we can do to save more lives from being lost to the substance use disorder crisis, we should be doing - and increasing access to overdose reversal agents at VA facilities is a commonsense step we can take to make these highly-effective treatments more accessible to veterans," said Shaheen. "I'm glad that my colleagues on the Veterans' Affairs Committee agreed and unanimously voted to advance our legislation to the Senate floor. I look forward to earning the bipartisan support to pass our bill and help fight the substance use epidemic facing our nation's veterans."

Currently, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) pharmacies provide naloxone to veterans at no-cost, but they must first ask a provider for a prescription. The End Veterans Overdose Act, as amended, would create a one-year pilot program that would make naloxone and other relevant overdose reversal agents available to all veterans without a prescription at VA pharmacies. The legislation is endorsed by the American Legion.

A copy of the bill text can be found?HERE.