JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – On the House calendar this week, the chamber entertained two bills aimed at mitigating opioid use in Missouri. One was overwhelmingly popular, but the other has stalled due to growing opposition.
The former was sponsored by Rep. Steve Lynch, R-Waynesville, and it would allow physicians to prescribe naloxone, also known as Narcan, to anyone in the hopes they could use it to assist anyone suffering from an opiate-related overdose, whether it be a prescription painkiller or heroin. Naloxone is an opioid antagonist and can reverse the effects of opiates in just minutes.
Lynch spoke passionately about the need for widespread availability of this drug to combat an opiate epidemic that the Centers for Disease Control says is killing 44 Americans every day. St. Louis has also received attention for its heroin problems.
“This drug is going to make a difference… just in case they need it,” Lynch said. “This is about hoping you can never have to use it, but you can thank God if you really need to have it.”
Rep. Charlie Davis, R-Webb City, said that the face of the opiate epidemic has changed since the increased popularity of prescription painkillers as well as the availability of heroin in pill form.
“When we think of heroin addicts, what’s the first thing that pops into your mind,” he said. “I have the vision of the guy in a vacant building, sitting on a wore-out bug infested mattress, got a spoon, heating it up, and injecting it intravenously.”
However, he said that image had changed into one that included everyone, adding that children in his district say the number one problem in their schools is drug use.
Only Rep. Keith Frederick, R-Rolla, spoke in strong opposition to the bill, arguing that drug dealers could sell narcan as a bundle with an opiate and give the false impression that drugs like heroin are no longer dangerous.
“We do people a disservice by saying that you’re going to be safe using narcotics if you’ve got the Narcan available,” Frederick said. “[We] might entrap more people into using.”
Regardless, the bill passed overwhelmingly 154-2, and Frederick voted in favor of the bill.
On the other hand, Rep. Holly Rehder’s, R-Sikeston, Narcotics Control Act has run into a few snags, although it was a bill near the top of the calendar when the week started. While the legislation passed last year with over 100 votes, some representatives have flipped since last year due to considerable pressure from libertarian interest groups and a letter from Rep. Jay Barnes, R-Jefferson City, alleging that the measure would infringe on rights to privacy.
“The PDMP logic tree works like this: because some people abuse prescription painkillers, government should track all people who use them – regardless of whether a person has done anything wrong,” Barnes said in his letter. “When you take a step back, it should not take long to see how absurd this logic is. If it’s acceptable logic for prescription painkillers, why should we stop there? There are a host of public health risks more serious than prescription drug abuse to which the same logic could be applied.”
Rehder contended that her program was no different than the National Precursor Log Exchange, which tracks the sale of pseudoephedrine to individuals because it can be used in the production of methamphetamines.
However, she added she did not want the bill to “limp through the process,” and would like to take time convincing the members of her caucus reticent to possibly make medical records of individuals vulnerable to hacking. She expects it to reach the floor for debate in the next few weeks.
