End Substance Use Disorder Hosts Sen. Maggie Hassan and Rep. Paul Tonko for Discussion on Expanding Access to Lifesaving Recovery Medication

Today, End Substance Use Disorder hosted Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Representative Paul Tonko (D-NY) for a discussion on the urgent need to pass the Mainstreaming Addiction Treatment Act (“MAT Act”). The members of Congress were joined by people in recovery and healthcare and harm reduction providers who shared their experiences on the front lines of the overdose crisis and how the Mainstreaming Addiction Treatment Act can saves lives and support recovery.

“This is a bipartisan bill and has bipartisan support. And the fact that it does is a testament to all of your efforts to educate lawmakers about the importance of medication-assisted treatment,” said Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH). “The thing that has made a real difference as we have been tackling this challenge is the advocacy of groups like all of yours. And the fact that you all have been willing not only to speak about the causes of substance use disorder but also the solutions...I know this is a really broad coalition and it's a really important one because that's how we're going to tackle this and end this epidemic once and for all.”

“As we sit here today, hundreds of thousands of families across the country are mourning the loss of a loved one to an overdose and millions more are struggling in isolation without access to basic treatment and support,” said Representative Paul Tonko (D-NY). “This suffering is made all the more devastating by the fact that, for nearly 20 years, we have had safe, effective medication that can cut the risk of opioid overdose in half and help people secure long-term recovery. But due to stigma and outdated policies, this medication - buprenorphine - reaches only 1 in 5 people who need it.”

“It’s vital that we do everything in our power to solve the overdose crisis,” said Erin Schanning, president of End Substance Use Disorder. “If we fail to act, overdoses and substance use disorder will continue to devastate our communities. But, if we work together to implement common-sense solutions like the MAT Act, we can save lives and promote healing.”

“Substance use disorder is criminalized and we need to put our resources, not into jailing people, but into making the treatment and harm reduction services available to everyone,” said Malika Lamont, co-founder of the Olympia Bupe Clinic and Director of VOCAL-WA. “The only way to overcome this crisis nationally is for each of us who are affected and working in the space to come forward and publicly speak about it. And to demand that our laws focus on healing our loved ones, not stigmatizing them.”

“This is a disease. And it’s a disease for which we have extraordinary medications like buprenorphine,” said Aakash Shah, an addiction and emergency medicine physician and medical director of the New Jersey Reentry Corp. “Buprenorphine cuts the risk of opioid overdose death in half and doubles the chance of recovery. It’s more effective than any medication that I know of as an emergency room doctor.”

“I started buprenorphine, and for the first time in over 100 attempts at my recovery, I stopped using heroin,” said Kevin Nooney, a care coordinator with the Hepatitis Education Project. “Buprenorphine helped me do what I could not do on my own - it prevented the painful withdrawal symptoms. The medication made me feel well and like myself. And it allowed me to focus on the other parts of my recovery - I was able to go to counseling, find a job, and go back to school. Thanks to buprenorphine, I’ve been in recovery for six years.”

The Mainstreaming Addiction Treatment Act is a common-sense solution to the opioid epidemic that can prevent overdoses, increase access to and participation in treatment, and reduce stigma. The bill removes federal restrictions on prescribing buprenorphine, a lifesaving recovery medication that is available in generic and can have an immediate effect in saving lives from overdose.

Over 120 organizations from across the country have called on Congress to pass this bipartisan legislation. Thanks to the efforts of members of this coalition, the Biden Administration recently took executive action to remove federal barriers to buprenorphine. And, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra has called on Congress to expand access to the lifesaving recovery medication.