[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 84 (Wednesday, May 15, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3695-S3696]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                  Unanimous Consent Request--H.R. 467

  Mr. CASSIDY. Mr. President, everyone here--everyone here--everybody 
in the audience, everybody watching on C-SPAN has a loved one or knows 
of someone whom they have loved who has either overdosed or died, 
actually, from an overdose of fentanyl--an incredible scourge on our 
society right now. Drug overdose is the leading cause of death among 
young adults 18 to 45, and synthetic opioids like fentanyl are 75 
percent of the cause, if you will, of U.S. overdose deaths.
  Fentanyl continues to kill almost 200 Americans a day--200 Americans 
a day. Like, today, 200 Americans will die from a fentanyl overdose--an 
entire generation, dying. Illegal fentanyl and fentanyl-related 
substances are flooding into our market from the southern border in 
unprecedented amounts, with the bulk of it originating from a handful 
of manufacturers in Wuhan Province, China. By the way, you can't help 
but point out that this is worsened by the Biden administration's 
complete failure to secure the southern border.
  Currently, fentanyl-related substances are classified as schedule I 
under the Controlled Substances Act. This classification provides law 
enforcement with the tools necessary to combat this emergency, going 
after the criminals who, again, are flooding our communities with these 
deadly drugs. But schedule I classification expires at the end of the 
year, and that is less than 8 months away.
  Now, for years, Congress has not made this classification permanent, 
and every day we get closer to this deadline, we risk losing this 
essential law enforcement tool. If we don't act, the chemical 
manufacturers in China, the cartels, and the criminals who exploit our 
communities are emboldened, and we must not allow this to happen.
  That is why today I am calling on the Senate to pass the Halt All 
Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act, or the HALT Fentanyl Act, to 
permanently classify fentanyl-related substances as a schedule I 
controlled substance. Now, the bill is not controversial. There are no 
poison pills. All it does is codify current law, ensuring we don't lose 
tools we need to confront the fentanyl epidemic. The House--with as 
many problems as the House has had passing legislation--passed this 
bill on a strong bipartisan basis last year.
  And the legislation removes barriers that impede the ability of 
researchers to conduct studies on these substances and allows for 
exemptions if the research provides evidence that specific analogs of 
fentanyl have a valid medical purpose. So we give law enforcement 
tools, but we also give the scientists, the medical scientists, tools 
to establish whether one of these analogs is worth having for medical 
purposes.
  Now, it is important to note that this week is National Police Week. 
We honor police officers and their service to our communities. Now, 
these officers are on the frontlines of the fentanyl crisis, holding 
criminals accountable, saving lives by preventing the spread of drugs, 
but at times giving drugs like Narcan to reverse an overdose.
  I am proud to say that we have a letter from 11 national law 
enforcement organizations supporting the HALT Fentanyl Act. And by 
passing this legislation, we will send a strong message to law 
enforcement: We have your back. We have your back as you battle the 
scourge of deadly drugs in our communities.
  The clock is ticking. Failure to act puts Americans in harm's way. We 
must pass this bill and get it to the President's desk for signature.
  Mr. President, now, as in legislative session, I ask unanimous 
consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be discharged from further 
consideration of H.R. 467 and the Senate proceed to its immediate 
consideration; further, that the bill be considered read a third time 
and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid 
upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  The Senator from Massachusetts.
  Mr. MARKEY. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, the HALT 
Fentanyl Act would permanently classify fentanyl-related substances as 
schedule I substances under the Controlled Substances Act.
  The fentanyl epidemic is ravaging communities across the United 
States. We are losing more than 80,000 Americans to overdose every year 
from opioid overdose. With deaths reaching this level, we do need every 
tool at our disposal to combat illicit fentanyl, but reclassification 
of fentanyl-related substances as schedule I substances would limit the 
government's ability to research overdose and addiction treatment 
medications, override critical public health considerations in 
scheduling decisions, and extend the policy approach of the failed War 
on Drugs.
  Schedule I drugs are difficult for scientists to research. Fentanyl's 
potency and danger demand that we study it and its analogs to combat 
overdose and addiction. A permanent, blanket schedule I category for 
any fentanyl-related substance would create barriers to vital research.

  This punishment-only categorization for fentanyl-related substances 
would eclipse the longstanding public health approach to Controlled 
Substances Act scheduling. The Controlled Substances Act authorizes the 
administration to consider concrete scientific factors when determining 
which scheduling category should apply to a drug, and that approach is 
absent here.
  Finally, this bill would bring the United States back to the approach 
of the failed War on Drugs where we criminalized drug use while 
ignoring the underlying issues that animate abuse and addiction. 
Prosecutions under this expansion will continue to disproportionately 
target people of color. A punishment-only approach will not reduce 
drugs in our communities.
  I have spoken to people on the frontlines of this epidemic: people 
with substance use disorder, families who have lost a loved one, and 
healthcare providers. They are the ones on the frontlines when people 
die from fentanyl. They are the ones who lose their lives or lose their 
patients,

[[Page S3696]]

friends, or family when we don't invest in the security and public 
health tools for communities. They are the ones who are frustrated 
every day by archaic laws that keep people from the prevention and 
treatment which they need.
  We must do better. We must make sure people have access to tools to 
keep fentanyl out of their communities. We need to make sure people 
have access to treatment--like methadone medication--to keep people in 
recovery, and we need to save lives. But permanently categorizing 
fentanyl-related substances as schedule I substances would impede our 
response to the overdose epidemic and lead to overincarceration.
  There has to be additional discussion and debate. Let us do that so 
that we can give this issue the attention which it needs and that it 
deserves so that any solution is effective and bipartisan.
  As a result, at this point, I have to object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The objection is heard.
  The Senator from Louisiana.
  Mr. CASSIDY. Mr. President, recognizing that there has been an 
objection, I would like to point out a couple of things, though.
  As regards permanently scheduling fentanyl-related substances would 
do nothing to limit overdoses: Congress has extended fentanyl 
scheduling on a temporary basis multiple times, and this has led to 
fewer overdoses and led to the creation of fewer new fentanyl-related 
substances.
  Next, the idea that designating them all as schedule I would limit 
the ability of researchers to study fentanyl is just not true. There is 
no indication that the temporary scheduling of fentanyl analogs has 
stifled research. The DEA, the Drug Enforcement Agency, has approved 
every research study since 2018. But this bill goes further by putting 
a robust process in place to study fentanyl. It does not disrupt 
ongoing things, but it actually creates an expedited process for 
certain FDA studies to be done in partnership with Federal Agencies.
  Lastly, that somehow this would contribute to overincarceration: The 
bill does not permanently bar DEA or HHS from continuing to look at the 
risks associated with it. If something has no risk, they can establish 
it has no risk. Therefore, it would not lead to overincarceration.
  But we do know that fentanyl is a dangerous--a dangerous--substance, 
and if we are concerned about the overincarceration of a certain 
population of our society, I can guarantee you that that population, 
like every population, is having people dying today from fentanyl 
overdose; that whichever group of Americans we are speaking of, they 
are losing someone today from fentanyl; and that this bill would help 
save a life in that particular group and, most importantly, in all 
groups.
  With that, though, recognizing there is an objection, I yield the 
floor.