Requires public institutions and buildings to be equipped with opioid antagonists; directs the commissioner of general services to promulgate regulations to address the appropriate number of opioid antagonists for such buildings based on the size or occupancy of the buildings, the training of personnel and use of opioid antagonists, and any other matter deemed necessary.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A1588A
SPONSOR: Buttenschon TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public buildings law and the public health law, in
relation to requiring public institutions and buildings to be equipped
with opioid antagonists
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
This bill requires all public facilities to carry opioid antagonists in
first aid kits and requires the education and training of staff persons
employed in such places in the administration of opioid antagonists,
which will allow for deaths due to overdoses to be prevented.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section. 1 of the bill amends Section of the Public Health Law by adding
the new subdivisions to require a supply of on-site opicid antagonists
in public facilities and the commissioner shall deem the quantity and
process.
Section 2 provides the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
In November of 2019, a ycung woman named Erin- lost her life in Roches-
ter, NY to an accidental Fentanyl overdose. Her relapse after months of
sobriety took her life. Like so many individuals that have fallen victim
to substance use disorder, her life had great meaning and immense worth.
Addiction is a disease that plagues 21 million Americans, and yet only
10% of them receive treatment. This disease is rapidly growing, and more
lives are being lost. Erin lost her life in a public space, and if
Narcan had been readily available and administered to her, her life
could have been saved. Action must be taken to avoid the loss of more
lives, which is the goal of this legislation. By making opioid antagOn-
ists available in first aid kits, more lives can potentially be saved.
The current opioid epidemic is the deadliest drug crisis in American
history, which has reached critical levels in New York State. "Families
Against Fentanyl," an opioid awareness organization, analyzed data from
U.S. government sources in 2020 and 2021 and found that fentanyl over-
doses are now the leading cause of death for Americans aged between 18
and 45. In 2021, The Center for Disease Control and Prevention also
found that 175 people die every day in the United States due to over-
doses, many of which could have been prevented with proper training and
education of how to administer Narcan or naloxone. With thousands of New
Yorkers dying at the hands of this epidemic, it. is essential that
public facilities across the state be required to carry, and have
personnel trained in the proper education and administration of, these
lifesaving drugs. Opicid antagonists like naloxone .allow for trained
administrators to reverse an overdose on the spot. Research shows that
public overdoses make up a large percentage of the overdose cases state-
wide. Unfortunately, access to naloxone is still extremely limited, and
establishments that might be able to offer lifesaving administration of
an opioid antagonist are not required to have these drugs on site. As
the state. Department of Health and various agencies take steps towards
combating the issue, it is crucial to strengthen protection measures for
our people. With an increased distribution and education of Narcan, more
lives can potentially be saved. Maintaining on-site opioid antagonists
in public places and equipping staff with the knowledge of administering
these life-saving medications are common sense solutions to potentially
preventing more'fatalities. Fatal opioid overdose deaths are preVenta-
ble. The keys to lowering the death toll are education, which helps to
fight the crippling stigma associated with the disease of addiction,
along with increased availability or distribution of opioid antagonists.
Having Narcan in first aid kits will allow for better access, and thus
more potential for saving lives. We must act now to prevent more deadly
overdoses.
Opioid antagonists, such as naloxone/Narcan or any other similarly
acting drug approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration,
have proven to be effective in the treatment of an opioid overdose.
Specifically, naloxone is an opioid blocker/receptor, which counteracts
life-threatening opioid overdoses by reversing the depression of the
central nervous system and respiratory system; thus, allowing an over-
dose victim's breathing to be restored. Naloxone is a non-addictive
medicaticn that has no effect if opioids are absent. This ensures that
administration of naloxone has no potential for abuse and is safe for
administration by a person who is educated and trained for moments of
crisis.
This legislation requires all public facilities to carry opioid antag-
onists in first aid kits and requires the education and training of
staff persons employed in such places in the administration of opioid
antagonists and that at least two provisions of such opioid antagonist
be on site at all times: ambulances or first response service providers,
all public elementary and secondary schools, all non-public elementary
and secondary schools, charter schools, universities, school districts
or boards of education, restaurants, bars, construction sites,
libraries, grocery stores, banks, children's overnight camps, government
offices, after-school programs, community centers, publicly
and.privately operated shelters, correctional facilities, county jails,
police stations, fire stations, pharmacies and doctors' offices, and
others. This legislation sets forth a definition of opioid antagonist to
mean any drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration that, when
administered, negates or neutralizes the pharmacological effects of an
opioid in the body.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1588--A
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 17, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BUTTENSCHON, GUNTHER, HEVESI, SIMON, SMULLEN,
SILLITTI, SANTABARBARA, McDONALD -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Health -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public buildings law and the public health law, in
relation to requiring public institutions and buildings to be equipped
with opioid antagonists
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
2 "Erin's law".
3 § 2. Section 140 of the public buildings law is amended by adding a
4 new subdivision 2-a to read as follows:
5 2-a. Subject to regulations promulgated pursuant to this subdivision,
6 it shall be an additional duty of each such superintendent or chief
7 executive officer of each of the public institutions and buildings of
8 the state to equip each such building with opioid antagonists. The
9 commissioner of general services shall promulgate regulations, in coor-
10 dination with the commissioner of health and in full accordance with the
11 standards, powers and authorizations of section thirty-three hundred
12 nine of the public health law, providing for a phase-in schedule of the
13 duty created by this subdivision. Such regulations shall address the
14 appropriate number of opioid antagonists for such buildings, based on
15 the size or occupancy of the buildings; the training of personnel and
16 use of such opioid antagonists; and any other matter deemed necessary by
17 such commissioner to effectuate the duty prescribed by this section.
18 § 3. Section 3309 of the public health law is amended by adding a new
19 subdivision 9 to read as follows:
20 9. The commissioner shall, in full accordance with the standards,
21 powers and authorizations established by this section, coordinate with
22 the commissioner of general services to effectuate the duty established
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05100-05-3
A. 1588--A 2
1 by subdivision two-a of section one hundred forty of the public build-
2 ings law to equip public institutions and buildings with opioid antag-
3 onists.
4 § 4. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a
5 law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment, and/or repeal of
6 any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on
7 its effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before
8 such effective date.
