Sen. Murkowski Leads Bipartisan Push to Expand Telehealth for Addiction Treatment
The TREATS Act is currently in the early stages of the legislative process. It was recently introduced in the Senate and sent to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions for review. There are no upcoming votes scheduled at this time.
The bill has strong bipartisan support from a large group of senators, but it still needs to pass through committee and both chambers of Congress.
Veterans have higher-than-average rates of substance use disorders and many live in rural areas far from VA facilities or other treatment providers. Expanding telehealth prescribing for addiction medications would make it easier for veterans to begin and maintain treatment remotely.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Introduced in Senate
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
The reintroduced TREATS Act would permanently allow clinicians to prescribe buprenorphine for OUD treatment through telehealth without a prior in-person exam. The bill seeks to codify pandemic-era waivers that improved treatment retention and reduced overdose risks by allowing both audio-visual and audio-only technology for medical evaluations.
The DEA and HHS have extended pandemic-era flexibilities that allow doctors to prescribe controlled substances via telehealth without an in-person visit through 2025. This extension provides a buffer for lawmakers pushing the TREATS Act, which would make these rules permanent for addiction treatment medications like buprenorphine.
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
TREATS Act
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