Vote Agenda:

• Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018
• Over-the-Counter Drug Safety, Innovation, and Reform Act
• Children's Hospital GME Support Reauthorization Act of 2018
• Firefighter Cancer Registry Act

Sharon Fast Gustafson to serve as General Counsel of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Jon Parrish Peede to serve as Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities

Tuesday, April 24, 2018

10:00 a.m. ET

430 Dirksen Senate Office Building

Tuesday, April 24, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions committee will hold an Executive Session for committee members to vote on four health bills, including legislation to address the nationwide opioid crisis. The committee will also vote on two nominations, the nomination of Sharon Fast Gustafson to serve as General Counsel of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the nomination of Jon Parrish Peede to serve as Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) said of the Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018: "Our goal is to move urgently, effectively, and in a bipartisan way. This is a broad-based set of 40 different proposals to address the opioid crisis. The bill could help states and communities begin to bring an end to the opioid crisis by reducing the number of prescription opioids, stopping illegal drugs at the border, and accelerating research on non-addictive pain medicines. We will consider and seek to approve this bill next Tuesday, so we can get it to the Majority Leader and to the Senate for prompt consideration, along with other important proposals that may be coming from other committees."

The bills slated for consideration at the April 24 committee meeting include:

• Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.) -- The Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018 (S.2680): This bill will help states and communities fight the opioid crisis by improving the ability of the Departments of Education, Labor, and Health and Human Services (HHS), including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA), and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), to address the crisis, including the ripple effects on children, families, and communities, and improve data sharing between states. This bill is the result of seven hearings as well as input and language from senators on both sides of the aisle.
• Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) and Bob Casey (D-Pa.) -- Over-the-Counter Drug Safety, Innovation, and Reform Act (S.2315): This legislation would modernize the way over-the-counter medications are regulated and brought to market. The reforms aim to protect public health and encourage the development of new products to better meet the needs of patients.
• Bob Casey (D-Pa.) and Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) -- Children's Hospital GME Support Reauthorization Act of 2018 (S. 2597): This bill will reauthorize the children's hospital graduate medical education (CHGME) program for five years. This bipartisan legislation, first enacted in 1999, provides funding to over 50 freestanding children's hospitals around the country, supporting the training of pediatricians and improving children's access to care.
• Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) --Firefighter Cancer Registry Act (S.382): Firefighters are exposed to a range of harmful toxins, and research has shown a strong connection between firefighting and an increased risk for several major cancers such as testicular, stomach, multiple myeloma and brain cancers. This legislation would create a national registry for firefighters diagnosed with cancer.