S. 4941
In committee
Introduced in the Senate on June 24, 2026, and referred to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
View S. 4941 on Congress.govExpand Methadone Access and Support Patient Choice
Methadone is one of the most effective medications available for opioid use disorder. It saves lives, supports long-term stability and recovery, and reduces the risk of fatal overdose.
Yet federal law still requires most people receiving methadone for opioid use disorder to obtain it through a federally certified opioid treatment program, commonly called a methadone clinic. Depending on where someone lives, that can mean frequent travel, limited dosing hours, transportation barriers, missed work, childcare challenges, and treatment that is difficult to fit into daily life.
Recovery All Ways supports no-barrier, person-centered access to every evidence-based medication for opioid use disorder.
Keep opioid treatment programs available. Add pharmacy-based access. Let people and their providers choose the pathway that works.
Current legislative update
Reviewed October 9, 2026
Companion methadone access bills are active in Congress
The Modernizing Opioid Treatment Access Act 2.0 of 2026, also known as MOTAA 2.0, has been introduced in both chambers. Neither bill has received a committee vote or become law. The most useful action right now is asking members of Congress to cosponsor the appropriate bill and help move it through committee.
H.R. 9790
In committee
Introduced in the House on July 20, 2026, and referred to the House Committees on Energy and Commerce and the Judiciary.
View H.R. 9790 on Congress.govOfficial records still list both bills at the introduced and committee-referral stage. RAW will update this section when either bill gains significant support, receives committee action, advances to a vote, or reaches another meaningful legislative milestone.
Take the 30-Second Action
Copy this message and send it through your lawmaker's online contact form:
When contacting a representative, include H.R. 9790. When contacting a senator, include S. 4941.
The issue, the legislation, and RAW's position
The issue
Methadone for opioid use disorder is generally limited to opioid treatment programs. For some people, those programs provide important support. For others, travel, scheduling, stigma, work conflicts, caregiving responsibilities, and program rules can become serious barriers to beginning or continuing care.
The legislation
MOTAA 2.0 would create an additional, regulated pathway through specially qualified prescribers and participating community pharmacies. It would not eliminate opioid treatment programs or allow every healthcare provider to prescribe methadone without additional qualifications.
RAW's position
No single treatment setting works for everyone. People should be able to choose between accessible, well-supported opioid treatment programs and pharmacy-based care when clinically appropriate and available.
What this means in real life
Why pharmacy-based methadone access matters
The policy debate can sound technical. For the person receiving medication, it can be much simpler: How difficult is it to get the medication that is keeping me alive?
Most methadone treatment for OUD must go through an OTP
A person may have to travel repeatedly to a specialized opioid treatment program for medication, even when they are otherwise stable in treatment.
- Transportation may be difficult or expensive.
- Dosing hours can conflict with work or school.
- Parents and caregivers may need childcare.
- Rural communities may have few nearby OTPs.
- Illness, disability, weather, or relocation can interrupt access.
Qualified healthcare providers and community pharmacies
For eligible patients, MOTAA 2.0 would create another regulated pathway in which specially qualified clinicians could prescribe methadone for opioid use disorder and participating pharmacies could dispense it.
- Care could be closer to home.
- Pharmacies often offer broader hours.
- Treatment could fit more easily around work and family.
- People would have another treatment setting to choose from.
- Opioid treatment programs would remain available.
An effective medication cannot save lives if people cannot realistically reach it.
New York State reports that methadone and buprenorphine reduce drug overdose deaths by more than 50 percent. Improving timely access to these medications and helping people remain in treatment can prevent deaths.
Treatment should be easier to reach than the unregulated drug supply.
Why expanding access matters
People can face very different barriers depending on their location, health, work, family responsibilities, and available transportation.
Current barriers may include
- Long or frequent trips to an opioid treatment program.
- Limited operating or dosing hours.
- Transportation costs and unreliable public transportation.
- Conflicts with employment, school, caregiving, or family responsibilities.
- Stigma associated with receiving care at a specialized clinic.
- A lack of nearby programs, especially in rural and underserved communities.
- Disruptions caused by illness, disability, relocation, weather, or emergencies.
Better access can support
- Earlier connection to evidence-based medication.
- Greater continuity of care.
- Fewer transportation and scheduling barriers.
- More privacy and treatment choice.
- Care that better fits employment and family responsibilities.
- More opportunities for people to survive, stabilize, and pursue their own goals.
Important context
Federal rules improved in 2024, but the central restriction remains
Federal policy has already become more flexible. MOTAA 2.0 addresses something those reforms did not change.
Federal rules improved in 2024
Updated federal regulations permanently expanded several flexibilities developed during the COVID-19 public health emergency. They gave opioid treatment programs more room to use individualized clinical judgment, flexible take-home medication, and audiovisual telehealth for treatment initiation when regulatory and clinical requirements are met.
Up to 7
take-home doses during the first 14 days
Up to 14
take-home doses beginning on day 15
Up to 28
take-home doses beginning on day 31
These are federal maximums that may be approved following an individualized clinical assessment. They are not automatic entitlements, and additional requirements may apply.
The central restriction remains
The 2024 reforms did not establish routine pharmacy-based prescribing and dispensing of methadone for opioid use disorder.
Under current federal law, methadone used to treat opioid use disorder generally still must be dispensed through a federally certified opioid treatment program or an authorized extension of one. That is the gap MOTAA 2.0 is designed to address.
Programs should use the flexibility that already exists and avoid unnecessarily restrictive schedules when less burdensome care can be provided safely.
What MOTAA 2.0 would do
The legislation would add another carefully regulated treatment pathway while preserving opioid treatment programs.
- Allow specially qualified clinicians to obtain a separate federal registration to prescribe methadone for opioid use disorder.
- Initially limit eligibility to board-certified addiction medicine physicians and addiction psychiatrists.
- Allow federal health officials to designate additional qualified licensed practitioners in the future.
- Allow participating community pharmacies to dispense approved liquid or dispersible-tablet methadone prescriptions without becoming opioid treatment programs.
- Require electronic prescribing.
- Allow supervised or unsupervised dispensing when appropriate.
- Permit telemedicine prescribing when otherwise allowed by federal law.
- Require informed consent, including information about differences in privacy protections.
- Preserve a patient's ability to receive care through an opioid treatment program.
- Maintain federal oversight, registration, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements.
- Allow states to prevent implementation within their borders.
Common questions
Myth vs. Fact
Expanding methadone access is sometimes described as removing treatment or safety requirements. That is not what MOTAA 2.0 proposes.
Pharmacy-based methadone would eliminate methadone clinics.
FactMOTAA 2.0 preserves opioid treatment programs. Pharmacy-based care would be an additional option, not a replacement.
Any doctor could simply prescribe methadone under the bill.
FactThe legislation creates a special federal registration pathway with specific professional qualifications, oversight, prescribing, and reporting requirements.
People must receive counseling for the medication to work.
FactCounseling, peer support, and other services can be valuable and should be available. Medication itself is evidence-based treatment and should not be withheld because someone does not participate in additional services.
Expanding access means eliminating safety oversight.
FactMOTAA 2.0 would maintain federal registration, professional qualifications, electronic prescribing, recordkeeping, reporting, and pharmacy requirements.
This is not either-or
Opioid treatment programs provide medication, counseling, medical care, peer support, and other services that many people value and want. Those programs should remain available, adequately funded, accessible, and responsive to patient needs.
Some people may prefer the structure and services of an opioid treatment program. Others may be better served by receiving medication through a qualified healthcare provider and a local pharmacy. Some may move between different models as their needs change. The person receiving care should be at the center of that decision.
Contact federal lawmakers
A brief call or contact-form message helps show that methadone access matters to people in our community.
Rep. Joe Morelle
U.S. Representative for New York's 25th District
The ask: Cosponsor H.R. 9790 and urge the House Energy and Commerce and Judiciary Committees to act.
Rochester: 585-232-4850
Washington: 202-225-3615
Sen. Chuck Schumer
United States Senator for New York
The ask: Cosponsor S. 4941 and support prompt action by the Senate HELP Committee.
Rochester: 585-263-5866
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand
United States Senator for New York
The ask: Cosponsor S. 4941 and support prompt action by the Senate HELP Committee.
Rochester: 585-263-6250
Do you live outside the Rochester area?
Contact the lawmakers who represent your address.
Use these call and message scripts
You do not need to be a policy expert. You can read the script as written or make it your own.
Phone script
Hello, my name is [your name], and I live in [your city or ZIP code]. I am calling to ask [lawmaker's name] to support the Modernizing Opioid Treatment Access Act 2.0.
Please cosponsor [H.R. 9790 or S. 4941] and support prompt committee action on the bill.
Methadone is an evidence-based treatment for opioid use disorder, but many people still face transportation, scheduling, geographic, and financial barriers to receiving it. This bill would add a regulated pharmacy-based option while preserving opioid treatment programs and patient choice.
Please help move this legislation forward. Thank you.
You may add a sentence about why this issue matters to you. You never have to disclose private health information to advocate for better policy.
Email or contact-form message
Subject: Please Support the Modernizing Opioid Treatment Access Act 2.0
Dear [representative or senator's name],
I am a constituent from [city or ZIP code], and I am asking you to support the Modernizing Opioid Treatment Access Act 2.0. Please cosponsor [H.R. 9790 or S. 4941] and support prompt committee action on the bill.
Methadone is an evidence-based medication for opioid use disorder, but current federal restrictions can require people to travel frequently to specialized opioid treatment programs. Transportation, work schedules, caregiving responsibilities, disability, rural distance, and limited program hours can make treatment difficult to access or continue.
This legislation would add a regulated pathway for qualified providers to prescribe methadone and participating pharmacies to dispense it. It would preserve opioid treatment programs and give people more choices about where they receive care.
Please support treatment access, patient dignity, and informed choice by helping move this legislation forward.
Thank you,
[your name]
[your city or ZIP code]
New York action
New York does not need to wait for Congress to improve access
Congress should create a pharmacy-based pathway, but New York and opioid treatment programs can also make better use of the flexibility that already exists.
New York's own research shows why implementation matters
NYS OASAS has studied methadone dosing practices before and after federal flexibility expanded. OASAS reports that fewer people initially had to visit opioid treatment programs daily, but stricter dosing schedules began returning over time.
OASAS has identified flexible take-home schedules, lower-threshold treatment entry, telemedicine, mobile medication units, and integrated outpatient programs as strategies for expanding access.
Why RAW is watching this: A regulation can permit patient-centered care without guaranteeing that every patient experiences it. Policy change matters, but implementation matters too.
RAW calls on New York and treatment providers to
- Fully implement the patient-centered flexibilities permitted under federal law.
- Make take-home decisions through individualized clinical assessments.
- Avoid unnecessarily restrictive visit schedules.
- Expand mobile medication units, satellite locations, transportation support, and permitted delivery strategies.
- Continue developing integrated programs that offer medication and additional services in one setting.
- Make program rules, grievance procedures, and appeal options clear to patients.
- Protect continuity of medication during hospitalization, relocation, provider changes, illness, and other disruptions.
- Include people who receive methadone in policy development, program evaluation, and quality improvement.
Contact New York State OASAS
Ask New York to continue expanding patient-centered methadone access and ensure that federal flexibilities are reflected in actual treatment practices.
Contact New York State OASASSuggested message:
I am asking New York State to fully implement federal methadone treatment flexibilities and continue expanding accessible, patient-centered options. Please support individualized take-home decisions, mobile and integrated services, continuity of medication, clear patient policies, and the meaningful inclusion of people who receive methadone in decisions that affect their care.
Ongoing monitoring
What RAW is watching
Expanding access will require more than a single bill. RAW continues to watch federal legislation, New York implementation, and what people actually experience when trying to receive methadone.
MOTAA 2.0
Cosponsors, committee hearings, markups, amendments, votes, and other movement on S. 4941 and H.R. 9790.
New York implementation
Whether OTPs are using individualized take-home schedules, telehealth, mobile medication units, and other flexibilities already permitted by federal rules.
Patient experience
Transportation, program hours, treatment interruptions, stigma, punitive practices, geographic access, and whether people receiving methadone are included in decisions affecting their care.
Key talking points
- Methadone is an evidence-based medication that saves lives.
- Access should not depend on repeated travel or a narrow dosing window.
- Pharmacy-based access would add an option. It would not eliminate opioid treatment programs.
- Patients should be able to choose the treatment setting that works for them.
- Federal oversight and professional qualifications would remain in place.
- Rural and underserved communities need additional access points.
- Counseling, peer support, and recovery services should be available without making them unnecessary barriers to medication.
- People directly affected by methadone policies should help shape them.
Share this action
Looking for help or treatment now?
Do not wait for legislation if you or someone you care about needs support. These services can help connect people with local options.
Recovery All Ways Hotline
3100-RAW(585-310-0729)
Call RAW for local support, harm reduction information, and help connecting with community resources.
Call RAWNew York State HOPEline
Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for confidential help with addiction, treatment, and support resources.
Call: 1-877-8-HOPENY
Call: 1-877-846-7369
Text: HOPENY to 467369
If you believe someone is experiencing an opioid overdose, call 911 and administer naloxone if it is available.
Verify the information
Official information, research, and sources
RAW encourages community members to review the legislation, regulations, research, and treatment information directly.
- S. 4941 on Congress.gov
- H.R. 9790 on Congress.gov
- Official text of S. 4941 on GovInfo
- Official text of H.R. 9790 on GovInfo
- Federal opioid treatment program final rule
- 42 CFR Section 8.12
- OASAS: Methadone Dosing at New York State OTPs
- OASAS: Medications for the Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder
- OASAS: A Spatial Epidemiologic Analysis of OUD Treatment
- New York State OASAS opioid use disorder information
- Representative Joe Morelle
- Senator Chuck Schumer
- Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
Continue taking action
A note from RAW
Recovery All Ways supports harm reduction, evidence-based treatment, recovery support, and the right of every person to make informed decisions about their care.
No shame. No one-size-fits-all recovery. No unnecessary barriers to staying alive.
Page review schedule
Last full review
October 9, 2026
Next scheduled review
November 2026
Legislative monitoring
Ongoing