I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5844 
To amend the Controlled Substances Act with respect to the registration 
of opioid treatment programs to increase stakeholder input from relevant 
communities and to ensure such programs are treating patients in need, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 28, 2025 
Mr. ESPAILLAT introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on 
the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the juris-
diction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To amend the Controlled Substances Act with respect to 
the registration of opioid treatment programs to increase 
stakeholder input from relevant communities and to en-
sure such programs are treating patients in need, and 
for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Harm Reduction 
Through Community Engagement Act of 2025’’. 
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mentary or secondary school, a learning center, 
a playground, or another drug treatment facil-
ity or program, including a supervised injection 
facility; 
‘‘(iii) the applicant justifies patient need 
for the treatment in the community involved; 
‘‘(iv) the applicant will actively promote 
the use of telehealth so as to minimize the need 
for patients to physically appear for treatment; 
‘‘(v) the applicant will designate a commu-
nity liaison responsible for developing and 
maintaining cooperative relationships with local 
elected officials, local law enforcement, and 
local community-based organizations including 
nonprofit organizations that provide social serv-
ices; 
‘‘(vi) the applicant will work with a cus-
tomer relationship management system of the 
local government (or establish and operate a 
customer relationship management system if 
none exists) to track and report data on the 
number of service requests received by such sys-
tem pertaining to drug abuse and treatment in 
the community involved; and 
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‘‘(vii) the applicant will report to the Sec-
retary treatment performance measurement 
data, including data concerning— 
‘‘(I) how many patients seek effective 
long-term addiction treatment; and 
‘‘(II) the effectiveness of the use of 
telehealth in patient treatment plans, in-
cluding how many patients are using tele-
health and the outcomes or progress of 
such patients.’’. 
(b) COMMUNITY IMPACT CONSIDERATION.—Section 
303(h) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 
823(h)), as amended by subsection (a), is further amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(2) COMMUNITY
IMPACT
CONSIDERATION.—For 
purposes of being determined to be qualified under para-
graph (1)(A), a practitioner seeking to become registered 
or maintain registration under paragraph (1) to dispense 
narcotic drugs to individuals for maintenance treatment 
or detoxification treatment shall comply with each of the 
following: 
‘‘(A) The practitioner shall— 
‘‘(i) conduct outreach to the community in-
volved concerning the practitioner’s treatment 
program; and 
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‘‘(ii) in conducting such outreach, give no-
tice to community stakeholders including com-
munity boards, tenant associations, outpatient 
treatment centers, health care providers, com-
munity-based nonprofit organizations that pro-
vide opioid use and overdose prevention and 
treatment services, and such other community 
stakeholders as may be determined by the Sec-
retary. 
‘‘(B) The practitioner— 
‘‘(i) shall develop and implement a neigh-
borhood engagement plan that outlines the 
practitioner’s engagement with stakeholders re-
ferred to in subparagraph (A)(ii) in the geo-
graphic location in which the opioid treatment 
program is located; and 
‘‘(ii) may include in such plan a descrip-
tion of the practitioner’s engagement with 
stakeholders, including homeowners associa-
tions, school administrators, neighboring busi-
nesses, community organizations, local councils, 
local emergency medical agencies, and law en-
forcement agencies. 
‘‘(C) The practitioner shall— 
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‘‘(i) establish and maintain a community 
advisory board; and 
‘‘(ii) include in the membership of such 
board volunteers from various stakeholder 
groups who represent the positions of the sur-
rounding community. 
‘‘(D) The practitioner— 
‘‘(i) shall develop and implement a commu-
nity relations plan to measure and minimize the 
negative impacts of the treatment program on 
the community; and 
‘‘(ii) may include in such plan— 
‘‘(I) policies and procedures to resolve 
community problems, including loitering 
and the blocking of pedestrian pathways; 
‘‘(II) procedures to consider commu-
nity input and impact; and 
‘‘(III) a procedure to escalate and 
solve the quality-of-life issues in the sur-
rounding blocks such as open air drug 
trading, uncapped needles disposed in pub-
lic walkways, and open drug use.’’. 
(c) REPORTING TO CONGRESS.—Section 303(h) of 
the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 823(h)), as 
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amended by subsections (a) and (b), is further amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(3) REPORTING TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 1 
year after the date of enactment of the Harm Reduction 
Through Community Engagement Act of 2025, and annu-
ally thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Congress 
a comprehensive report on community engagement and 
the maintenance of clinics in connection with maintenance 
treatment or detoxification treatment provided pursuant 
to this subsection, including— 
‘‘(A) treatment performance measurement data; 
‘‘(B) guidance on best practices for sustaining 
community engagement; and 
‘‘(C) policy recommendations for sustaining 
community engagement.’’. 
Æ 
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