§ 20-13-1802 — Legislative findings

The General Assembly finds that: (1) Naloxone is a relatively inexpensive opioid antagonist developed to counter the effects of opiate overdose, specifically the life-threatening depression of the central nervous and respiratory systems; (2) Naloxone will not adversely affect the human body if the person who receives Naloxone is suffering from an overdose of a drug that is not an opioid; (3) Naloxone is clinically administered via intramuscular, intravenous, or subcutaneous injection; (4) Naloxone is administered outside of a clinical setting or facility intranasally via a nasal atomizer, similar to the use of a common, over-the-counter anticongestion nasal spray; (5) The American Medical Association has supported the lay administration of this lifesaving drug since 2012; (6) Similar Naloxone access laws have reversed more than ten thousand (10,000) opioid overdoses by lay people in other states; (7) The American Medical Association has acknowledged that more must be done to prevent these unnecessary opioid overdose fatalities that devastate families and communities; (8) The National Institutes of Health have found that Naloxone lacks any addictive qualities that could lead to potential abuse and that medical side effects or unintended consequences associated with the drug have not been reported; and (9) Any administration of Naloxone to an individual experiencing an opioid overdose must be followed by professional medical attention and treatment.

Legislative History

Added by Act 2015, No. 1222,§ 2, eff. 7/22/2015.