End Veterans Overdose Act of 2026
Summary
What This Bill Does
The End Veterans Overdose Act requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to make covered opioid overdose rescue medications available at VA pharmacies to veterans and their caregivers. It is a targeted harm-reduction bill that makes naloxone-style rescue medication easier to obtain through VA rather than relying on separate community access.
Who Benefits and How
Veterans at overdose risk benefit from easier access to rescue medications through VA pharmacies. Veteran caregivers benefit because they can obtain medication needed to reverse an overdose in an emergency. VA clinicians benefit from a clear statutory pathway to connect patients and caregivers with overdose rescue medication. Veterans treatment programs benefit when overdose prevention is integrated into VA pharmacy access.
Who Bears the Burden and How
VA pharmacies must stock or provide covered opioid overdose rescue medications. VA pharmacists must counsel veterans and caregivers on medication use. VA clinicians must identify veterans and caregivers who should receive rescue medication. Federal taxpayers bear medication and implementation costs.
Key Provisions
- Requires VA to make covered overdose rescue medications available at VA pharmacies.
- Covers both veterans and their caregivers.
- Uses VA pharmacy access to improve opioid overdose prevention.
- Creates implementation duties for VA pharmacists and clinicians.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Requires VA pharmacies to make opioid overdose rescue medications available to veterans and caregivers.
Key Policy Areas
Veterans, Health Care, Drug Policy
Primary Purpose
Requires VA pharmacies to make opioid overdose rescue medications available to veterans and caregivers.
Policy Domains
Bill provisions
Identified Gains
- Veterans at overdose risk
- Veteran caregivers
- VA clinicians
- Veterans treatment programs
Identified Costs
- VA pharmacies
- VA pharmacists
- VA clinicians
- Federal taxpayers
Sponsors
Jeanne Shaheen
D-NH | Primary Sponsor
Legislative Progress
ReportedCommittee on Veterans' Affairs. Ordered to be reported with an …
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
Introduced in Senate
Mrs. Shaheen (for herself and Mr. Crapo) introduced the following …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "secretary"
- → Secretary of Veterans Affairs
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology