HARRISBURG, PA — The Pennsylvania House of Representatives has passed H.B. 640, a bill introduced by state Rep. Dan Williams to enhance the annual reporting requirements for the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP).
Since its establishment, DDAP has been central to advancing education, intervention, treatment, and recovery initiatives across the Commonwealth. According to Rep. Williams, the proposed updates to the annual report will help the General Assembly better evaluate program effectiveness and allocate resources to combat the opioid crisis and other substance misuse challenges.
“Enhancing reporting would allow the General Assembly to better assess program effectiveness, allocate resources where they are most needed and explore new strategies for addressing substance misuse, treatment and recovery,” said Williams.
The bill also aims to improve transparency and collaboration with the public, advocacy organizations, and service providers while providing key performance benchmarks for evaluating programs. Rep. Williams highlighted the importance of state-level data collection, particularly in the context of federal uncertainties.
“With uncertainties surrounding health initiatives and data collection on the federal level under a new administration that does not seem particularly concerned about those things, having the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs use performance benchmarks when evaluating how well programs work will lead to better policymaking in Pennsylvania, and perhaps in other states,” Williams added.
The legislation now moves to the state Senate for further consideration.
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