Chapter 251
2012 -- H 7248 SUBSTITUTE A AS
AMENDED
Enacted 06/18/12
A N A C T
RELATING TO FOOD
AND DRUGS - GOOD SAMARITAN OVERDOSE PREVENTION ACT
Introduced
By: Representatives Ferri, Bennett, Edwards,
Marcello, and
Date Introduced: January 25, 2012
It is enacted by the
General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Title 21 of the General Laws entitled "FOOD
AND DRUGS" is hereby
amended by adding thereto the following chapter:
CHAPTER
28.8
THE
GOOD SAMARITAN OVERDOSE PREVENTION ACT
21-28.8-1.
Short title. – This chapter shall be known and
may be cited as “The Good
Samaritan Overdose Prevention
Act”.
21-28.8-2.
Definition. – “Opioid
antagonist” is a drug which is a competitive antagonist
that binds to the opioid
receptors with higher affinity than agonists but does not activate the
receptors, effectively blocking the receptor, preventing the
human body from making use of
opiates and endorphins.
21-28.8-3.
Authority to administer opioid antagonists – Release
from liability. – (a)
A person may administer an opioid
antagonist to another person if:
(1) He or she, in
good faith, believes the other person is experiencing a drug overdose;
and
(2) He or she acts
with reasonable care in administering the drug to the other person.
(b) A person who
administers an opioid antagonist to another person
pursuant to this
section shall not be subject to civil liability or criminal
prosecution as a result of the
administration of the drug.
21-28.8-4.
Emergency overdose care – Immunity from legal repercussions.
– (a) Any
person who, in good faith, without malice and in the absence
of evidence of an intent to defraud,
seeks medical assistance for someone experiencing a drug
overdose or other drug-related medical
emergency shall not be charged or prosecuted for any crime
under RIGL 21-28 or 21-28.5, except
for a crime involving the manufacture or possession with
the intent to manufacture a controlled
substance or possession with intent to deliver a controlled
substance, if the evidence for the
charge was gained as a result of the seeking of medical
assistance.
(b) A person who
experiences a drug overdose or other drug-related medical emergency
and is in need of medical assistance shall not be charged
or prosecuted for any crime under RIGL
21-28 or 21-28.5, except for a crime involving the
manufacture or possession with the intent to
manufacture a controlled substance or possession with intent to deliver
a controlled substance, if
the evidence for the charge was gained as a result of the
overdose and the need for medical
assistance.
(c) The act of
providing first aid or other medical assistance to someone who is
experiencing a drug overdose or other drug-related medical
emergency may be used as a
mitigating factor in a criminal prosecution pursuant to the
controlled substances act.
21-28.8-5.
Law enforcement reports. – In the first week of
January, 2013 and each year
thereafter, the attorney general shall, in cooperation with
local law enforcement agencies and the
state police, submit to the general assembly a report
summarizing the impact of this chapter on
law enforcement. The report shall include any incidents
in which a law enforcement agency was
barred, due to the immunity provisions of subsection
21-28.8-4(a), from charging or prosecuting a
person under
charged or prosecuted, and indicating whether the person was
charged with, or prosecuted for,
any other criminal offense resulting from the agency's
response to the request for medical
assistance.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage and shall
expire on July 1, 2015.
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LC00761/SUB A/6
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