A new bipartisan bill aims to kick-start development of a new painkiller that isn’t addictive as a way to help fight opioid abuse.
The Advancing Cutting-Edge Research Act introduced Thursday gives the National Institutes of Health more flexible authority to conduct research on how to address the opioid epidemic. NIH Director Francis Collins has predicted that a new painkiller that isn’t addictive could be developed within five years with consistent funding and flexible authority, and the bill aims to give Collins more tools to reach that goal.
“This legislation builds on the 21st Century Cures Act by giving the NIH even more flexibility to conduct research to address the opioid crisis, for example by entering research contracts more quickly or partnering with innovative companies,” said Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., one of the legislation’s co-sponsors, in a statement.
The 21st Century Cures Act was signed into law in late 2016 and gave NIH $4.8 billion over 10 years and tools to accelerate new research.
Federal data shows that 115 Americans die each day from an opioid overdose.
Senate leadership introduced a two-year budget deal that includes $6 billion in funding to fight the opioid epidemic.
Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash.; Todd Young, R-Ind.; and Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., also sponsored the legislation.
Alexander and Murray are chairman and ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which Young and Hassan also sit on.
