April 04, 2018

Warren Priorities Included in Senate’s Bipartisan Discussion Draft to Confront Opioid Crisis

Washington, DC – United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) applauded the release of bipartisan legislation to address the opioid crisis. Led by the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, Senators Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), the discussion draft incorporates Senator Warren’s efforts to address the opioid epidemic, including:

  • Disposal of Controlled Substances by Hospice Care Providers: This provision would allow hospice care providers to safely and properly dispose of leftover prescription opioid medications in order to reduce diversion and misuse of prescription medications.
  • Recovery Housing Best Practices: This provision would require HHS to develop guidelines for operating recovery housing, in order to ensure that individuals recovering from an opioid addiction receive quality care.


Senator Warren has been leading efforts in Congress to reduce the number of unused prescription opioid medications left in families’ medicine cabinets, including working to allow hospice programs to safely dispose of these medications. The senator has also been working to create guidelines for operating recovery housing to ensure that individuals with substance use disorders receive the support they need. In June 2016, she led a bipartisan request for a GAO review of federal and state oversight of sober living homes.

Senator Warren plans to introduce legislation related to hospice drug disposal and guidelines for recovery residences in the coming weeks.

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