House advances jail-based medication-assisted treatment bill after contested amendments

House Bill 561, described on the floor as amending Title 61 to provide for county participation requirements related to treatment programs, was called up for consideration on May 13. Members debated and adopted several amendments and the bill was advanced as amended.

Representative Heffley offered amendment a00649, an agreed-to change that requires the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) to prioritize grant applications requesting non‑narcotic medication-assisted treatment and to make reasonable efforts to distribute funds in a timely manner. The amendment was adopted on a recorded vote (ayes 203, nays 0) after the sponsor and members stated the amendment was agreed to.

Additional agreed-to amendments removed Medicaid-related implementation language and adjusted program administration; those amendments were accepted by voice and recorded votes (the transcript records ayes 203, nays 0 for some adopted amendments). Two amendments were ruled out of order for violation of House Rule 20 (single subject rule); Representative Kephart appealed those rulings. The appeals to the chair’s rulings were put to a vote and the House sustained the chair’s rulings (the clerk recorded ayes 102, nays 101 on the appeals, leaving the rulings in place as the judgment of the House). Representative Madden, the bill’s prime sponsor, described the agreed-to amendments as preserving the original intent of the grant program while allowing counties flexibility to serve inmate populations.

After amendment votes and procedural appeals, the House agreed to the bill as amended; the clerk recorded the bill as agreed to and it will be reprinted consistent with floor changes.

Ending: HB 561 advanced as amended; reprinted bill will reflect the adopted amendments and proceed to the next step in the legislative process.