A proposed bill would empower Veterans Affairs doctors to track and identify patterns of opioid abuse in hopes of reducing addiction, overdose, and death.

Maryland Republican Rep. Neal Dunn introduced the Veterans Opioid Abuse Prevention Act in September, which directs the VA secretary to connect health care providers to a national network of state-based prescription drug monitoring programs that can identify patterns of patient abuse. The legislation is co-sponsored by Reps. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., Bruce Poliquin, R-Maine, Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, and Paul Tonko, D-N.Y.

"We cannot stand silent and watch prescription opioid abuse destroy the lives of those who fought for our freedoms," said Dunn, a former major and Army surgeon who completed a residency at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. "This bill instructs the VA to do what more and more private doctors are doing - connect to the national drug monitoring databases so no one slips through the cracks."

The bill was approved by the House Veterans Affairs Committee last week and will now face a vote in the full chamber.

Under the bill, VA health care providers could identify patterns of abuse by patients from different states by accessing a national network of prescription drug monitoring programs.

VA doctors can currently consult a state-based program, just like private-sector physicians. Unlike private-sector physicians, however, VA doctors are unable to tap into a national network of state-based programs, which restricts their ability to track patterns of abuse for out-of-state patients.

The shortcoming was noted in a preliminary report in July by the president's commission on combating drug addiction and the opioid crisis. The commission recommended enhancing interstate data sharing.

Existing national networks allow providers to confidentially access prescribing data, as well as history, across state lines.

This bill would empower VA doctors to help combat opioid addiction, which research shows impacts veterans at rates double that of civilians, Tenney said. Her district borders Fort Drum, home of the Army's 10th Mountain Division.

“As the mother of an active-duty Marine and the representative of a district with over 55,000 veterans, it is among my top priorities to ensure that the VA has the tools necessary to provide the highest quality of care for our nation's heroes,” she said.

Amanda Dolasinski is MOAA's staff writer. She can be reached at amandad@moaa.org. Follow her on Twitter @AmandaMOAA.