Judiciary Committee
AN ACT PROVIDING IMMUNITY TO A PERSON WHO ADMINISTERS AN OPIOID ANTAGONIST TO ANOTHER PERSON EXPERIENCING AN OPIOID-RELATED DRUG OVERDOSE
SUMMARY: This act authorizes anyone, if acting with reasonable care, to administer an opioid antagonist to a person he or she believes, in good faith, is experiencing an opioid-related drug overdose. The act gives civil and criminal immunity to such a person regarding the administration of the opioid antagonist, except for licensed health care professionals acting in the ordinary course of employment, who are already covered if authorized to prescribe the drug.
Existing law allows licensed health care practitioners authorized to prescribe an opioid antagonist, if acting with reasonable care, to prescribe, dispense, or administer it to treat or prevent a drug overdose without being civilly or criminally liable for the action or for its subsequent use. Thus, these practitioners can prescribe opioid antagonists to people who are not their patients to assist another person experiencing a drug overdose.
By law, an “opioid antagonist” is naloxone hydrochloride (e. g. , Narcan) or any other similarly acting and equally safe drug that the Food and Drug Administration has approved for treating a drug overdose.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2014
OLR Tracking: JO: MK: JKL: am