John Thomas Decker Act of 2016

Floor Speech

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Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4969) to amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to provide for informational materials to educate and prevent addiction in teenagers and adolescents who are injured playing youth sports and subsequently prescribed an opioid, as amended.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 4969

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``John Thomas Decker Act of 2016''. SEC. 2. INFORMATION MATERIALS AND RESOURCES TO PREVENT ADDICTION RELATED TO YOUTH SPORTS INJURIES.

(a) Technical Clarification.--Effective as if included in the enactment of the Children's Health Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-310), section 3405(a) of such Act (114 Stat. 1221) is amended by striking ``Part E of title III'' and inserting ``Part E of title III of the Public Health Service Act''.

(b) Amendment.--Title III of the Public Health Service Act is amended by inserting after part D of such title (42 U.S.C. 254b et seq.) the following new part E: ``PART E--OPIOID USE DISORDER ``SEC. 341. INFORMATION MATERIALS AND RESOURCES TO PREVENT ADDICTION RELATED TO YOUTH SPORTS INJURIES.

``(a) Report.--The Secretary shall--

``(1) not later than 24 months after the date of the enactment of this section, make publicly available a report determining the extent to which informational materials and resources described in subsection (b) are available to teenagers and adolescents who play youth sports, families of such teenagers and adolescents, nurses, youth sports groups, and relevant health care provider groups; and

``(2) for purposes of educating and preventing addiction in teenagers and adolescents who are injured playing youth sports and are subsequently prescribed an opioid, not later than 12 months after such report is made publicly available and taking into consideration the findings of such report, develop and, in coordination with youth sports groups, disseminate informational materials and resources described in subsection (b) for teenagers and adolescents who play youth sports, families of such teenagers and adolescents, nurses, youth sports groups, and relevant health care provider groups.

``(b) Materials and Resources Described.--For purposes of this section, the informational materials and resources described in this subsection are informational materials and resources with respect to youth sports injuries for which opioids are potentially prescribed and subsequently potentially lead to addiction, including materials and resources focused on the dangers of opioid use and misuse, treatment options for such injuries that do not involve the use of opioids, and how to seek treatment for addiction.

``(c) No Additional Funds.--No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated for the purpose of carrying out this section. This section shall be carried out using amounts otherwise available for such purpose.''.
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Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4969, the John Thomas Decker Act of 2016, introduced by my colleagues, Mr. Meehan of Pennsylvania, Mr. Kind of Wisconsin, Mr. Rooney of Florida, and Mr. Veasey of Texas.

Young athletes have been disproportionately impacted by the opioid epidemic currently plaguing our country. One study found that adolescent males who played sports were twice as likely to be prescribed opioids than their peers and four times more likely to abuse them than nonathletes. Writing a prescription for opioids in a population that may not fully grasp the risk associated with the drugs can be dangerous and lead to unintended negative outcomes.

H.R. 4969 amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to study what information and resources are available to youth athletes and their families regarding the dangers of opioid use and abuse, nonopioid treatment options, and how to seek additional addiction treatment.

The Secretary would then be required to report the findings and work with stakeholders to disseminate resources to students, parents, and those involved in treating a sports-related injury.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

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Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote for H.R. 4969.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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