President Obama signs CARA into law, urges importance of funding for addiction treatment

Following approval in the House by a vote of 407-5 and in the Senate by a vote of 92-2, President Barack Obama, JD, recently signed S. 524, the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, into law. However, he expressed concern regarding the Republican party’s response to funding treatment for individuals with addiction.

“I am deeply disappointed that Republicans failed to provide any real resources for those seeking addiction treatment to get the care that they need,” President Obama said in a press release. “In fact, they blocked efforts by Democrats to include $920 million in treatment funding.”

Barack Obama

The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) encompasses a comprehensive response to addiction, including:

$160 million in treatment programs, expanding medication-assisted treatment, and specialized programs for pregnant and postpartum women, veterans and youth;

$192 million in resources towards the $7.65 billion projected necessary funding;

Prevention via education efforts, community-based prevention, drug-free communities and awareness campaigns;

A new recovery program that provides recovery services in local communities and recovery support in schools and higher education via comprehensive nationwide programs;

Expansion of naloxone availability to law enforcement agencies and other first responders;

Expansion of quality treatment through the Evidence-Based Opioid and Heroin Treatment Pilot, the Opioid Use Disorder Treatment Expansion and Modernization Act and by granting prescribing authority to nurse practitioners and physician assistants;

Overdose reversal capacity and training for law enforcement and assistance with disposal sites for unwanted prescriptions; and

Criminal justice reform to better aid individuals with substance use disorders.

Following the act’s passage through Congress, the National Council for Behavioral Health praised the legislation while cautioning that more work needed to be done.

“The National Council for Behavioral Health applauds Congress for its hard work to bring this bill to passage. Yet today, we must also recognize that our work is far from over. Without proper funding, the good intentions of CARA become empty promises,” the council wrote in a press release. “We must support states in their efforts to expand addiction care by fully funding CARA. The House says it will appropriate $581 million when it returns to Washington in September. While we’re waiting, more than 6,000 Americans will die from opioid overdose, and thousands more from alcohol-related deaths. We must finish the process and give CARA teeth.”

President Obama echoed this sentiment.

“My Administration has been doing everything we can to increase access to treatment, and I’m going to continue fighting to secure the funding families desperately need,” he said in the release. “In recent days, the law enforcement community, advocates, physicians, and elected officials from both sides of the aisle have also joined in this call. Now, it’s up to Republicans to finish the job and provide adequate funding to deal with this public health crisis. That’s what the American people deserve.”