As a father and grandfather, the well-being of my family is my highest priority. It’s from this perspective that I look at Maine’s future and those challenges that will define it. We know opioid dependency will remain a critical issue, as will the urgent need for viable patient alternatives. But I hope that younger generations will not see their communities and loved ones impacted by opioid dependency to the same degree we have. To make this a reality, we need to create legislative pathways for accessible alternatives.

This year, the Maine Legislature passed L.D. 2096, An Act to Ensure Access to Pain Management Services in Health Insurance Plans, which is one important step in making sure that opioid-alternative pain management is readily available to patients who need it. This legislation is just one step in the right direction; we also need federal legislation to more broadly encompass this growing and important field of pain management.

That’s why I’m urging Maine’s federal delegation to support pending federal legislation, the Alternatives to PAIN Act, that would ensure seniors enrolled in Medicare Part D would never have to pay more for a non-opioid alternative prescription than an opioid prescription. Important work is being done by so many people to work toward a future with fewer overdose deaths and less opioid dependency. I believe the passage of this novel federal legislation is an important piece of that.

Rep. Jim Boyle
Gorham