AUTHORIZATION OF PERMANENT PROGRAM TO IMPROVE OPIOID MANAGEMENT IN THE MILITARY HEALTH SYSTEM.

SEC. 719. AUTHORIZATION OF PERMANENT PROGRAM TO IMPROVE OPIOID MANAGEMENT IN THE MILITARY HEALTH SYSTEM. Section 716 of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Public Law 115-232; 10 U.S.C. 1090 note), is amended— (1) in subsection (a)(1), by striking “Beginning not” and inserting “Except as provided in subsection (e), beginning not”; (2) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (f); and (3) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new subsection (e): “(e) Alternative Initiative to Improve Opioid Management.—As an alternative to the pilot program under this section, the Director of the Defense Health Agency, not later than January 1, 2023— “(1) may implement a permanent program to improve opioid management for beneficiaries under the TRICARE program; and “(2) if the Director decides to implement such a permanent program, shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives the specifications of and reasons for implementing such program.” .