Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., introduced a bill April 17 to impose jail time for pharmaceutical executives whose companies use manipulative practices for marketing opioids, according to STAT.
For pharmaceutical executives, the legislation proposes to impose a 10-year minimum prison sentence and fines equal to the executive's compensation package if their company has been identified as illegally contributing to the opioid epidemic. For those companies, it would also impose an additional fine of $7.8 billion.
The bill outlined numerous mechanisms by which the HHS could demonstrate a company's liability in the epidemic, including mandating written justifications for pill orders that do not appear medically reasonable. Additionally, the legislation would establish an opioid reimbursement fund the HHS would administer that collects the fines and distribute them to other federal departments.
The proposed legislation would also prohibit companies from directly marketing opioid products without providing sufficient warning of their potential for causing addiction and create a reimbursement fund to bring in revenues from the imposed penalties.
The legislation is the most recent in opioids-related bills, but takes a more explicit aim at pharmaceutical companies than other proposals. A version of an opioids-related bill is predicted to be the last major legislation to be pursued on Capitol Hill before the November midterm elections, according to STAT.
Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., who chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee, hopes to bring a legislative package addressing opioids to a vote by May 28.