42 U.S.C. § 290aa–16 — Evaluation of performance of Department of Health and Human Services programs

(1) Evaluations. Within five years of July 22, 2016, the Secretary must finish evaluating every program the Secretary runs under this Act (except sections 703 through 707) that mainly gives grants to address opioid abuse, including grants the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration awards under section 1536 of title 21. The evaluation is based on the outcomes and metrics described below. Within 90 days after finishing each evaluation, the Secretary must publish its results, send a report to the relevant congressional committees, and publish the data used. (2) Setting metrics and outcomes. Within 180 days of July 22, 2016, the Secretary must identify what outcomes these opioid-related programs are supposed to achieve, and what metrics will show whether they achieved them. The Secretary must publish these outcomes and metrics within 30 days of identifying them. (3) Collecting data. The Secretary must require grantees under these opioid-focused programs to collect data based on those metrics and report it to the Secretary every year. (4) Who evaluates. The Secretary must either arrange for the National Academy of Sciences to do the evaluation, or contract with an outside entity — not a federal agency — that is qualified to study opioid use and abuse and draw conclusions from that research. (5) Exception. If a program is already required to undergo a similar evaluation under some other federal law, the Secretary does not have to evaluate it again under this section.