Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is calling on the Biden administration to collaborate with Congress on a permanent solution to combatting deadly synthetic fentanyl – a leading cause of opioid overdoses. In letters to President Biden, the Justice Department and the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), Grassley underscored rising fentanyl-related overdose deaths and the need to work across the aisle on a permanent solution.
While the Biden Administration has acknowledged the need to control fentanyl analogues, it also abandoned a 2019 legislative proposal by an interagency working group tasked with finding a solution. And though Congress has traditionally passed long-term extensions of class-wide restrictions on fentanyl analogues, Congressional Democrats demanded a much shorter stopgap last month, significantly truncating the window to develop a permanent solution.
“We must take long-term, sustainable action, which can only be achieved if we work together. I look forward to our continued dialogue and relationship on finding permanent solutions to controlling fentanyl related substances, and truly hope the next 5 months are spent wisely,” Grassley wrote.
Grassley introduced bipartisan legislation to extend expiring restrictions for 14 months as Congress explores a permanent policy on fentanyl analogues. Ultimately, Congressional Democrats opted for a five-month extension, which was signed into law last week.
Grassley’s letter to President Biden is available HERE.
Grassley’s letter to the Justice Department and ONDCP is available HERE.
Original source can be found here.
