[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 140 (Thursday, August 6, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Page S5284]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself and Mr. Grassley):
  S. 4491. A bill to designate methamphetamine as an emerging threat, 
and for other purposes; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, psychostimulant overdose deaths, 
including methamphetamine-related deaths, increased by 27 percent in 1 
year. That is a higher rate of increase than any other illicit 
substance in our country, including fentanyl.
  It is time to sound the alarm. We must take immediate action to 
prevent methamphetamine from becoming the next drug overdose crisis 
facing our country.
  That is why I am introducing the Methamphetamine Response Act with my 
colleague, Senator Grassley.
  This bill does two things.
  First, it declares methamphetamine an emerging drug threat.
  Second, it requires the Office of National Drug Control Policy, 
ONDCP, to develop and implement a national plan that is specific to 
methamphetamine, in accordance the ONDCP Reauthorization, which I was 
proud to coauthor, and which was enacted in 2018 as part of the SUPPORT 
Act.
  This plan must include an assessment of the methamphetamine threat, 
including the current availability of, and demand for, the drug, and 
the effectiveness of evidence-based prevention and treatment programs, 
as well as law enforcement programs; short- and long-term goals focused 
on supply and demand reduction and the expansion of prevention and 
treatment programs; performance measures related to the plan's goals; 
and the level of funding needed to implement the plan, including an 
assessment of whether available funding can be reprogrammed or 
transferred or whether additional funds are needed.
  There is no question that methamphetamine is emerging yet again as a 
major drug threat to our Nation.
  Between 2008 and 2017, methamphetamine-related treatment admissions 
increased from 15 percent to nearly 24 percent. Heroin use among those 
admitted for methamphetamine treatment increased from 5.3 percent to 
23.6 percent, indicating a significant and troubling increase in poly 
substance use.
  Between 2018 and 2019, psychostimulant overdose deaths, including 
methamphetamine deaths, increased in 27 of the 38 states that provide 
drug-specific data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 
This amounts to a 27-percent increase nationally.
  By the end of 2019, methamphetamine availability, use, purity, and 
potency had increased, as street level prices declined.
  Data shows that methamphetamine use is no longer limited to Midwest 
and Western States but is increasingly prevalent in Northeastern 
States.
  Emergency room admissions for suspected stimulant overdoses, 
including methamphetamine, increased by 23 percent between January 2019 
and 2020. These increases occurred in 36 States and the District of 
Colombia.
  In the first 9 months of fiscal year 2020, methamphetamine seizures 
increased by 52 percent.
  COVID-19 is likely to exacerbate these trends.
  In fact, the National Institute on Drug Abuse has warned clinicians 
to be prepared to monitor adverse effects associated with increased 
methamphetamine use, including respiratory and pulmonary effects, among 
COVID-19 patients.
  Additionally, the necessary social distancing requirements associated 
with COVID-19 have made in-person treatment more difficult, increasing 
the probability that those seeking treatment may not be able to access 
it.
  These facts alone are enough to declare methamphetamine an emerging 
threat, but public reports indicating that Mexican cartels are 
stockpiling methamphetamine at the border and are poised to flood the 
United States with methamphetamine make the situation that much more 
urgent.
  In 1 year methamphetamine killed more than 16,000 Americans. Absent 
immediate action and a whole-of-government plan, these fatalities will 
continue to increase.
  Please join me in supporting Methamphetamine Response Act to stop 
methamphetamine from becoming the next wave in a series of preventable 
crises that have impacted the United States.
                                 ______