WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill, who introduced a bill last month to repeal the Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act of 2016 that dramatically restricted DEA’s ability to crack down on opioid distributors, issued the following statement after 44 Attorneys General signed a letter in support of repealing the law:
“It’s incredibly encouraging to have so many of the nation’s top law enforcement officials rally behind the legislation I’ve introduced to repeal this law. There’s no silver bullet when it comes to this national crisis, but one of the most common-sense measures we can take right now is giving the DEA back the tools necessary to take aggressive enforcement actions against opioid distributors suspected of wrongdoing.”
After media reports indicated that the Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act of 2016 had harmed DEA’s enforcement efforts against opioid distributors suspected of wrongdoing, McCaskill introduced a bill to repeal the law. McCaskill announced earlier this week that she will be leading a roundtable discussion on November 28 on her repeal bill and the need to strengthen DEA enforcement against opioid distributors.
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