ASAM Urges Congress to Pass MOTAA 2.0 Before Year-End

The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) has sent a letter to Congressional leaders urging them to pass the bipartisan Modernizing Opioid Treatment Access Act 2.0 (MOTAA 2.0) before the end of the year. The letter is addressed to leadership of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and the House Judiciary Committee.

As of September, nearly 150 organizations have endorsed MOTAA 2.0, which would expand access to treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD) with methadone through a carefully regulated prescribing and pharmacy-dispensing pathway. Endorsing organizations include national medical and pharmacist organizations, opioid treatment programs, correctional and jail organizations, recovery organizations, patients, families, and more. 

The letter also notes that this new version of MOTAA includes several changes from the original bill, including permitting pharmacy-observed dosing when clinically appropriate, among other safeguards. 

Given the urgency of the ongoing addiction and overdose crisis, ASAM is urging Congress to include MOTAA 2.0 in a year-end legislative vehicle. 

Read ASAM's full letter here.