Attorneys general from 44 states on Tuesday signed a letter [text, PDF] asking Congress to repeal the Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act [text, PDF], which they claim prevents the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) from using effective drug enforcement efforts.

The National Association of Attorneys General sent the letter to Republican and Democratic leaders in light of an investigation earlier this year that revealed the disabling effects of the Act on the DEA in preventing pharmaceutical companies from “spilling [WP report] prescription narcotics onto the nation’s streets.” The letter cites to federal laws affected by the Act and explains the Act’s affect on the DEA’s most important tool:

In the midst of this deepening public health crisis—at a time when our nation needs every available weapon at its disposal to combat the opioid epidemic—the Act effectively strips the Drug Enforcement Administration of a mission-critical tool, namely, the ability to issue an immediate suspension order against a drug manufacturer or distributor whose unlawful conduct poses an imminent danger to public health or safety.

Reports concerning the investigation were especially startling, considering Congress unanimously consented and “approved the law last year without a vote in either chamber” [WP report].