I 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 8868 

To amend title V of the Public Health Service Act to provide for increased 

oversight of recovery housing, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 3, 2020 

Mr. TRONE (for himself, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, and Mr. LEVIN of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To amend title V of the Public Health Service Act to provide 

for increased oversight of recovery housing, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Excellence in Recovery 

5 Housing Act’’. 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 8868 IH

1 SEC. 2. CLARIFYING THE ROLE OF SAMHSA IN PROMOTING 

2 THE AVAILABILITY OF HIGH-QUALITY RECOV3 ERY HOUSING. 

4 Section 501(d) of the Public Health Service Act (42 

5 U.S.C. 290aa) is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (24)(E), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

7 the end; 

8 (2) in paragraph (25), by striking the period at 

9 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(26) collaborate with national accrediting enti12 ties and reputable providers and analysts of recovery 

13 housing services and all relevant Federal agencies, 

14 including the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Serv15 ices, the Health Resources and Services Administra16 tion, other offices and agencies within the Depart17 ment of Health and Human Services, the Office of 

18 National Drug Control Policy, the Department of 

19 Justice, the Department of Housing and Urban De20 velopment, and the Department of Agriculture, to 

21 promote the availability of high-quality recovery 

22 housing for individuals with a substance use dis23 order.’’. 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 8868 IH

1 SEC. 3. DEVELOPING GUIDELINES FOR STATES TO PRO2 MOTE THE AVAILABILITY OF HIGH-QUALITY 

3 RECOVERY HOUSING. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health 

6 and Human Services, acting through the Assistant Sec7 retary for Mental Health and Substance Use, shall de8 velop, and publish on the internet website of the Substance 

9 Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, con10 sensus-based guidelines and nationally recognized stand11 ards for States to promote the availability of high-quality 

12 recovery housing for individuals with a substance use dis13 order. Such guidelines shall— 

14 (1) be developed in consultation with national 

15 accrediting entities and reputable providers and ana16 lysts of recovery housing services and be consistent 

17 with the best practices developed under section 550 

18 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290aa); 

19 and 

20 (2) to the extent practicable, build on existing 

21 best practices and suggested guidelines developed 

22 previously by the Substance Abuse and Mental 

23 Health Services Administration. 

24 (b) PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD.—Before finalizing 

25 guidelines under subsection (a), the Secretary of Health 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 8868 IH

1 and Human Services shall provide for a public comment 

2 period. 

3 (c) EXCLUSION OF GUIDELINE ON TREATMENT

4 SERVICES.—In developing the guidelines under subsection 

5 (a), the Secretary may not include any guideline or stand6 ard with respect to substance use disorder treatment serv7 ices. 

8 (d) SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER TREATMENT SERV9 ICES.—In this section, the term ‘‘substance use disorder 

10 treatment services’’ means items or services furnished for 

11 the treatment of a substance use disorder, including— 

12 (1) medications approved by the Food and 

13 Drug Administration for use in such treatment, ex14 cluding each such medication used to prevent or 

15 treat a drug overdose; 

16 (2) the administering of such medications; 

17 (3) recommendations for such treatment; 

18 (4) clinical assessments and referrals; 

19 (5) counseling with a physician, psychologist, or 

20 mental health professional (including individual and 

21 group therapy); and 

22 (6) toxicology testing. 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 8868 IH

1 SEC. 4. COORDINATION OF FEDERAL ACTIVITIES TO PRO2 MOTE THE AVAILABILITY OF HIGH-QUALITY 

3 RECOVERY HOUSING. 

4 Section 550 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

5 U.S.C. 290ee–5) is amended— 

6 (1) by redesignating subsections (e), (f), and 

7 (g) as subsections (h), (i), and (j), respectively; and 

8 (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(e) COORDINATION OF FEDERAL ACTIVITIES TO

11 PROMOTE THE AVAILABILITY OF HIGH-QUALITY RECOV12 ERY HOUSING FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH A SUBSTANCE

13 USE DISORDER.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 

15 through the Assistant Secretary, and the Secretary 

16 of the Department of Housing and Urban Develop17 ment, shall convene and serve as the co-chairs of an 

18 interagency working group composed of representa19 tives of each of the Federal agencies described in 

20 paragraph (2) (referred to in this section as the 

21 ‘working group’) for the following purposes: 

22 ‘‘(A) To increase collaboration, coopera23 tion, and consultation among such Federal 

24 agencies, with respect to promoting the avail25 ability of high-quality recovery housing. 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 8868 IH

1 ‘‘(B) To align the efforts of such agencies 

2 and avoid duplication of such efforts by such 

3 agencies. 

4 ‘‘(C) To develop objectives, priorities, and 

5 a long-term plan for supporting State, Tribal, 

6 and local efforts with respect to the operation 

7 of high-quality recovery housing that is con8 sistent with the best practices developed under 

9 this section. 

10 ‘‘(D) To coordinate inspection and enforce11 ment among Federal and State agencies. 

12 ‘‘(E) To coordinate data collection on the 

13 quality of recovery housing. 

14 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL AGENCIES DESCRIBED.—The 

15 Federal agencies described in this paragraph are the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘(A) The Department of Health and 

18 Human Services. 

19 ‘‘(B) The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 

20 Services. 

21 ‘‘(C) The Substance Abuse and Mental 

22 Health Services Administration. 

23 ‘‘(D) The Health Resources Services Ad24 ministration. 

25 ‘‘(E) The Indian Health Service. 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 8868 IH

1 ‘‘(F) The Department of Housing and 

2 Urban Development. 

3 ‘‘(G) The Department of Agriculture. 

4 ‘‘(H) The Department of Justice. 

5 ‘‘(I) The Office of National Drug Control 

6 Policy. 

7 ‘‘(J) The Bureau of Indian Affairs. 

8 ‘‘(K) Any other such agency or subagency 

9 as the chair determines necessary and appro10 priate. 

11 ‘‘(3) MEETINGS.—The working group shall 

12 meet on a quarterly basis. 

13 ‘‘(4) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Beginning not 

14 later than one year after the date of the enactment 

15 of this section and annually thereafter, the working 

16 group shall submit to the Committee on Energy and 

17 Commerce, the Committee on Ways and Means, the 

18 Committee on Agriculture, and the Committee on 

19 Financial Services of the House of Representatives 

20 and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 

21 and Pensions, the Committee on Agriculture, Nutri22 tion, and Forestry, and the Committee on Finance 

23 of the Senate a report describing the work of the 

24 working group and any recommendations of the 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 8868 IH

1 working group to improve Federal, State, and local 

2 policy with respect to recovery housing operations.’’. 

3 SEC. 5. NAS STUDY. 

4 Section 550 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

5 U.S.C. 290ee–5), as amended by section 4, is further 

6 amended by inserting after subsection (e) (as inserted by 

7 such section 4) the following: 

8 ‘‘(f) NAS STUDY AND REPORT.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 

10 through the Assistant Secretary, shall enter into an 

11 arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences 

12 under which the National Academy agrees to con13 duct a study on— 

14 ‘‘(A) the availability in the United States 

15 of high-quality recovery housing and whether 

16 that availability meets the demand for such 

17 housing in the United States; and 

18 ‘‘(B) State, Tribal, and local regulation 

19 and oversight of recovery housing. 

20 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—The arrangement under para21 graph (1) shall provide for the National Academy of 

22 Sciences to submit, not later than 1 year after the 

23 date of the enactment of this subsection, a report 

24 that contains— 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 8868 IH

1 ‘‘(A) the results of the study under such 

2 paragraph; 

3 ‘‘(B) the National Academy’s recommenda4 tions for Federal, State, and local policies to 

5 promote the availability of high-quality recovery 

6 housing in the United States; 

7 ‘‘(C) recommendations for Federal, State, 

8 and local policies to improve data collection on 

9 the quality of recovery housing; 

10 ‘‘(D) recommendations for recovery hous11 ing quality metrics; 

12 ‘‘(E) recommendations to eliminate restric13 tions by recovery residences that exclude indi14 viduals who take prescribed medications for 

15 opioid use disorder; and 

16 ‘‘(F) a summary of allegations, assertions, 

17 or formal legal actions on the State and local 

18 levels by governments and non-governmental or19 ganizations with respect to the opening and op20 eration of recovery residences. 

21 ‘‘(3) CONSULTATION.—In conducting the study 

22 under this subsection, the National Academy of 

23 Sciences shall consult with national accrediting enti24 ties and reputable providers and analysts of recovery 

25 housing services.’’. 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 8868 IH

1 SEC. 6. GRANTS FOR STATES TO PROMOTE THE AVAIL2 ABILITY OF HIGH QUALITY RECOVERY HOUS3 ING. 

4 Section 550 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

5 U.S.C. 290ee–5), as amended by sections 4 and 5, is fur6 ther amended by inserting after subsection (f) (as inserted 

7 by such section 5) the following: 

8 ‘‘(g) GRANTS FOR IMPLEMENTING NATIONAL RE9 COVERY HOUSING BEST PRACTICES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 

11 grants to States (and political subdivisions thereof), 

12 Tribes, and territories— 

13 ‘‘(A) for the provision of technical assist14 ance by national accrediting entities and rep15 utable providers and analysts of recovery hous16 ing services to implement the guidelines, nation17 ally recognized standards, and recommendations 

18 developed under section 3 of the Excellence in 

19 Recovery Housing Act and this section; and 

20 ‘‘(B) to promote the availability of high21 quality recovery housing for individuals with a 

22 substance use disorder and practices to main23 tain housing quality long term. 

24 ‘‘(2) STATE ENFORCEMENT PLANS.—Beginning 

25 not later than 90 days after the date of the enact26 ment of this paragraph and every 2 years thereafter, 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 8868 IH

1 as a condition on the receipt of a grant under para2 graph (1), each State (or political subdivisions there3 of), Tribe, or territory receiving such a grant shall 

4 submit to the Secretary, and make publicly available 

5 on a publicly accessible Internet website of the State 

6 (or political subdivisions thereof), Tribe, or territory, 

7 the plan of the State (or political subdivisions there8 of), Tribe, or territory, with respect to the promotion 

9 of high-quality recovery housing for individuals with 

10 a substance use disorder located within the jurisdic11 tion of such State (or political subdivisions thereof), 

12 Tribe, or territory, and how such plan is consistent 

13 with the best practices developed under this section 

14 and guidelines developed under section 3 of the Ex15 cellence in Recovery Housing Act. 

16 ‘‘(3) REVIEW OF ACCREDITING ENTITIES.—The 

17 Secretary shall periodically review the accrediting 

18 entities providing technical assistance pursuant to 

19 paragraph (1)(A).’’. 

20 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

21 Section 550 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

22 U.S.C. 290ee–5), as amended by sections 4, 5, and 6 is 

23 further amended by amending subsection (j) (as redesig24 nated by such section 4) to read as follows: 

25 ‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 8868 IH

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To carry out this section, 

2 there is authorized to be appropriated— 

3 ‘‘(A) $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2021; and 

4 ‘‘(B) $11,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

5 2022 through 2026. 

6 ‘‘(2) RESERVATIONS OF FUNDS.—The Sec7 retary shall reserve— 

8 ‘‘(A) not less than $1,000,000 to carry out 

9 subsection (e) for each of fiscal years 2021 

10 through 2026; 

11 ‘‘(B) not less than $1,000,000 to carry out 

12 subsection (f) for fiscal year 2021; and 

13 ‘‘(C) not less than $10,000,000 to carry 

14 out subsection (g) for each of fiscal years 2022 

15 through 2026.’’. 

16 SEC. 8. REPUTABLE PROVIDERS AND ANALYSTS OF RECOV17 ERY HOUSING SERVICES DEFINITION. 

18 Section 550(i) of the Public Health Service Act (42 

19 U.S.C. 290ee–5(i)), as redesignated by section 4, is 

20 amended by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(4) The term ‘reputable providers and analysts 

22 of recovery housing services’ means recovery housing 

23 service providers and analysts that— 

24 ‘‘(A) use evidence-based approaches; 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 8868 IH

1 ‘‘(B) act in accordance with guidelines 

2 issued by the Assistant Secretary for Mental 

3 Health and Substance Use; 

4 ‘‘(C) have not been found guilty of health 

5 care fraud by the Department of Justice; and 

6 ‘‘(D) have not been found to have violated 

7 Federal, State, or local codes of conduct with 

8 respect to recovery housing for individuals with 

9 a substance use disorder.’’. 

10 SEC. 9. TECHNICAL CORRECTION. 

11 Title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 

12 290aa et seq.) is amended— 

13 (1) by redesignating section 550 (relating to 

14 Sobriety Treatment and Recovery Teams) (42 

15 U.S.C. 290ee–10), as added by section 8214 of Pub16 lic Law 115–271, as section 550A; and 

17 (2) moving such section so it appears after sec18 tion 550 (relating to National Recovery Housing 

19 Best Practices). 

Æ 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS