Rep. Wood: Bill H.225 aims to prevent opiate overdose deaths

April 15, 2021 |  By Rep. Theresa Wood

You can tell when legislators sense the end of the session is just a few weeks away because the pace of work in the virtual halls of the Legislature definitely picks up as many bills come to the floor for a vote and key “money” bills pass the House and are now being worked on in the Senate.

I’m going to focus on a bill that the House Human Services Committee worked on extensively last year, but it failed to pass due to the focus on COVID-19-related legislation. It was reintroduced this year as H.225, a bill to decriminalize small amounts of unprescribed buprenorphine.

First, what is buprenorphine?  Buprenorphine, or as some know it by the brand names Suboxone or Subutex, is a drug used in the treatment of heroin or other opiate addiction.  It relieves the symptoms of withdrawal (severe nausea, anxiety, cold chills and sweats; muscle aches, abdominal pain; diarrhea and vomiting) without providing a sense of euphoria or a “high.”  It can prevent an overdose death by blocking the impact of fentanyl, which people impacted by substance use disorder often unknowingly take when using heroin or other substances.

The bill H.225 decriminalizes up to 224 milligrams of buprenorphine obtained without a prescription – in other words, “street bupe.”  Why decriminalize a prescription drug being sold on the street?  Put simply – to save lives and reduce harm.  

Extensive testimony taken last year and supplemented this year shows that people who access “street bupe” are less likely to die from a heroin or other opioid overdose and that this drug provides a bridge to physician treatment for substance use disorder.  

Vermont’s opioid treatment system has been nationally renowned. However, some individuals need time to take that step. Access to buprenorphine without the threat of being prosecuted can provide the time for the individual to take that step. The amount being decriminalized in this bill is approximately a one-to-two week supply. Individuals with large amounts of buprenorphine will still be prosecuted as they are more likely to be selling the drug illegally.  

Testimony received from the Chittenden County State’s Attorney Sarah George indicated that they stopped prosecuting small amounts of buprenorphine in 2018 and that other state’s attorneys are starting to follow suit. So this bill was also about providing equity under the law for people wherever they live in Vermont.

Ironically, this bill didn’t pass last year due to COVID. And during the pandemic, opioid deaths have risen dramatically to an all-time high of 157 in 2020, up 38% over 2019. Contrast that to 136 deaths due to the coronavirus in 2020. The impact of social isolation during the pandemic has taken its toll. 

Vermont has a reputation for waging war against opioid deaths – the decriminalization of small amounts of buprenorphine is one more weapon in that war. The bill passed the House on a roll call vote of 126 to 19 and is now in the Senate.

Rep. Theresa Wood, D-Waterbury, is vice chair of the House Human Services Committee.