PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Congressional Research Service
No official summary is available in the imported record yet.
People & committees
Rep. Bonamici, Suzanne [D-OR-1] · D–OR
Legislative record
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Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Oct 13, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2026-10-01 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
The proposal would create grants to establish or maintain sites for disposing of unwanted prescription medicines. It would charge manufacturers, producers, and importers a fee on opioid sales and authorize funding up to the fees collected. Patients prescribed opioids for cancer-related pain and patients in hospice would receive discounts to avoid paying costs attributable to the fee. Prescribed drugs used exclusively in medically assisted treatment for opioid addiction would be excluded from the fee.
the Attorney General shall award grants to covered entities to establish or maintain disposal sites for unwanted prescription medications.
There is hereby imposed on the sale of any active opioid by the manufacturer, producer, or importer a fee equal to 1 cent per 100 milligrams so sold.
amounts paid by an eligible patient for an active opioid are discounted at time of payment or purchase to ensure that such patient does not pay any amount attributable to a fee under paragraph (3)
(i) a patient for whom any active opioid (as so defined) is prescribed to treat pain relating to cancer or cancer treatment; (ii) a patient participating in hospice care;
excludes any prescribed drug which is used exclusively for the treatment of opioid addiction as part of a medically assisted treatment effort.
there is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection an amount not to exceed the aggregate amount of the fees collected pursuant to paragraph (3).
Section 1 would name the bill the Safe Disposal of Opioids Act of 2026.
This Act may be cited as the Safe Disposal of Opioids Act of 2026.
Section 2 would add a grant program to the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016. The Attorney General would be required to award grants to covered entities to establish or maintain disposal sites for unwanted prescription medicines.
Section 203 of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 (21 U.S.C. 822a) is amended by adding at the end the following:
In carrying out subsection (b), the Attorney General shall award grants to covered entities to establish or maintain disposal sites for unwanted prescription medications.
Together, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies and prescription-drug manufacturers, distributors, and reverse distributors could receive no more than 10% of the total grant dollars awarded in a fiscal year. The text does not explain the specialized category of reverse distributors.
Of the total amount of awards under subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year, the Attorney General shall not award more than 10 percent to covered entities that are— (i) State, local, or tribal law enforcement agencies; or (ii) manufacturers, distributors, or reverse distributors of prescription medications.
The Secretary of Health and Human Services would have to establish discounts at payment or purchase so eligible patients pay no amount attributable to the opioid fee, with as little burden on patients as possible.
The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish a mechanism by which amounts paid by an eligible patient for an active opioid are discounted at time of payment or purchase to ensure that such patient does not pay any amount attributable to a fee under paragraph (3), with as little burden on the patient as possible.
Discount eligibility would cover patients prescribed opioids for pain relating to cancer or cancer treatment, and patients participating in hospice care. If such a patient dies or becomes incapacitated, or in a similar situation determined by the Secretary, eligibility would extend to an appropriate family member, medical proxy, similar representative, or the patient's estate.
the term eligible patient means— (i) a patient for whom any active opioid (as so defined) is prescribed to treat pain relating to cancer or cancer treatment; (ii) a patient participating in hospice care; and (iii) in the case of the death or incapacity of a patient described in clause (i) or (ii) or any similar situation as determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the appropriate family member, medical proxy, or similar representative or the estate of such patient.
The bill would impose a fee of 1 cent per 100 milligrams of active opioid sold by a manufacturer, producer, or importer.
There is hereby imposed on the sale of any active opioid by the manufacturer, producer, or importer a fee equal to 1 cent per 100 milligrams so sold.
For the fee, an active opioid would mean opium, an opiate, or a derivative that meets the referenced federal definition of a controlled substance. Prescribed drugs used exclusively to treat opioid addiction as part of medically assisted treatment would be excluded.
the term active opioid— (I) means any controlled substance (as defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act, as in effect on the date of the Safe Disposal of Opioids Act of 2026) which is opium, an opiate, or any derivative thereof; and (II) excludes any prescribed drug which is used exclusively for the treatment of opioid addiction as part of a medically assisted treatment effort.
For a medicine containing an active opioid and another ingredient, the fee would apply only to the active opioid portion.
In the case of a product that includes an active opioid and another ingredient, subparagraph (A) shall apply only to the portion of such product that is an active opioid.
Starting in fiscal year 2027 and continuing each subsequent fiscal year, the bill would authorize Congress to provide funding for the new subsection up to the aggregate fees collected. This is permission for funding through appropriations, rather than an appropriation that itself supplies the money.
For fiscal year 2027 and each subsequent fiscal year, there is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection an amount not to exceed the aggregate amount of the fees collected pursuant to paragraph (3).
The supplied official-actions snapshot, updated October 13, 2026, records introduction in the House and referral to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on October 1, 2026.
Source snapshot updated 2026-10-13T16:38:39Z. 2026-10-01: Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. 2026-10-01: Introduced in House
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2026-10-01. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No unrelated provision was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion applies only to that version and does not establish the contents or attachment history of other versions or accompanying materials.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No congressionally directed spending for a particular recipient or place was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version; accompanying materials needed to assess formal earmark status were not supplied.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
Findings to examine
The supplied text includes narrow protections and an exemption within the proposed opioid-fee policy. Their identification does not imply that they are unjustified.
Patients prescribed opioids for cancer-related pain and patients in hospice would receive special protection from costs attributable to the fee through required discounts. The protection also covers specified representatives or estates when the patient dies, becomes incapacitated, or encounters a similar situation determined by the Secretary.
amounts paid by an eligible patient for an active opioid are discounted at time of payment or purchase to ensure that such patient does not pay any amount attributable to a fee under paragraph (3)
the term eligible patient means— (i) a patient for whom any active opioid (as so defined) is prescribed to treat pain relating to cancer or cancer treatment; (ii) a patient participating in hospice care; and (iii) in the case of the death or incapacity of a patient described in clause (i) or (ii) or any similar situation as determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the appropriate family member, medical proxy, or similar representative or the estate of such patient.
Manufacturers, producers, and importers selling prescribed drugs used exclusively for medically assisted treatment of opioid addiction would have those drugs excluded from the proposed fee. This is a use-specific exemption within the opioid sales-fee policy.
There is hereby imposed on the sale of any active opioid by the manufacturer, producer, or importer a fee equal to 1 cent per 100 milligrams so sold.
excludes any prescribed drug which is used exclusively for the treatment of opioid addiction as part of a medically assisted treatment effort.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Oct 13, 2026. How PlainBill uses AI