WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) introduced the Non-Opioids Prevent Addiction in the Nation (NOPAIN) for Veterans Act. The legislation would expand veteran access to non-opioid alternatives by providing pathways for FDA-approved non-opioid treatments to be included in the VA National Formulary (VANF).
“Our veterans deserve the very best care we can provide, including safe and effective options to manage pain without exposing them to unnecessary risk,” Senator Capito said. “By ensuring FDA-approved non-opioid treatments are included on the VA National Formulary, our legislation will make these alternatives easier to prescribe and easier for veterans to access.”
“In New Hampshire, we’re finally seeing the tide turn on the opioid epidemic through declining overdose deaths, and that progress has been fueled in part by policies that encourage doctors to prescribe alternatives to opioids for patients struggling with pain management,” Senator Shaheen said. “Last year, CMS implemented the legislation Senator Capito and I got signed into law that encourages use of non-opioid treatments for Medicare patients struggling with pain management – and our veterans deserve equal access to these non-opioid treatment options. This bipartisan legislation would advance veteran health care by maximizing access to safe, effective FDA-approved non-opioid alternatives and furthering efforts to tackle the opioid epidemic.”
Cosponsors of the legislation include: U.S. Senators Katie Britt (R-Ala.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Jim Justice (R-W.Va.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Angus King (I-Maine), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.).
The following groups have endorsed the legislation: Disabled American Veterans (DAV), Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA), The American Legion, Vietnam Veterans of America, and Voices for Non-Opioid Choices.
BACKGROUND:
Despite the existence of safe and effective, FDA-approved non-opioid alternatives for postoperative and acute pain, legislation is needed to ensure that veterans have access to them through the VANF.
In late 2022, the NOPAIN Act, legislation led by Senators Capito and Shaheen, was signed into law to expand Medicare enrollee access to non-opioid alternatives for postoperative pain. This legislation would similarly expand access within the VA system.
The legislation Senators Capito and Shaheen introduced today would expand veteran access to non-opioid alternatives by providing pathways for FDA approved non-opioid treatments to be included in the VANF and available for prescribing at all VA facilities.
