WASHINGTON, D.C. - As the economy also shows the effects of the opioid epidemic that continues to take a toll on communities across the United States, two local senators have introduced legislation designed to alleviate some of the issues faced in our region.
The Beige Book, commentary on current economic conditions by the Federal Reserve district, surveyed the economic activity across the country in April, May and July of 2017 and all noted the inability of employers to find workers able to pass drug screenings.
Likewise, a federal study in 2013 estimated that prescription opioid abuse cost the economy $78.5 billion, but by 2015 the economic cost of the opioid crisis was estimated at $504 billion, according to a report from The Council of Economic Advisers, an agency that is part of the Executive Office of the President.
Now, legislation introduced by U.S. Sens. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, called the "Collectively Achieving Recovery and Employment (CARE) Act," is designed to address the workforce shortage created by the opioid epidemic.
The bill would combine existing grant programs at the U.S. Department of Labor and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to create a six-year pilot project to combine job training and addiction recovery services, the senators said in a joint news release.
"For individuals on the road to recovery, re-entering the workforce can be a real challenge. At the same time, many employers are having difficulty filling open positions in industries that are critical to growing our economy," Capito said. "This bipartisan legislation will help those who have struggled with addiction get good-paying jobs as they work to turn their lives around and also fill important workforce needs."
Capito said the bipartisan bill is a result of discussions with community leaders and mental health and addiction treatment professionals.
"I hear the same thing from mayors all across Ohio: employers can't fill openings because workers can't pass drug tests, and Ohioans struggling with addiction can't find a job to help them get back on their feet," Brown said in the release. "We know addiction treatment and workforce training programs can be successful separately, but this crisis requires them to work together."
The CARE Act would allow counties to apply for competitive grants directly, as long as they have a qualified local workforce organization and nonprofit addiction treatment organization willing to participate.
"The CARE Act builds on the National Health Emergency Dislocated Worker Demonstration Grant pilot program supported by President Donald J. Trump and announced by U.S. Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta last month," Capito said. "The Dislocated Worker grants will help workers impacted by the opioid crisis acquire new skills and help train drug addiction treatment providers and other professions that address problems related to opioids."
Princeton economics chair Janet Currie said the relationship between opioid prescribing and employment doesn't support any simple narrative, especially because many opioid users remain in the workforce.
"This observation suggests that policy responses should be designed to take account of the fact that many addicts work," Currie said in the news release. "Therefore, treatment options that help people retain their connection to the labor market are likely to be necessary to effectively combat the epidemic."
The bipartisan package is expected to pass out of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee on Tuesday, April 24, according to Brown's office.