As of 2018, 46 states and the District of Columbia had passed Good Samaritan laws.40 Vermont`s law is one of the most comprehensive in the country: While most of these laws provide limited immunity from minor drug crimes for the person who overdoses and the person who needs medical attention, Vermont includes limited immunity for all crimes under the Controlled Substances Act. to every bystander at the crime scene or in Near the scene of an overdose.41 However, when it comes to the range of crimes — and local populations — affected by immunity, Good Samaritan laws vary from state to state and are rarely as comprehensive as those in Vermont or the CDC.42 The overdose crisis has evolved over time and is now largely characterized by deaths. involving illegally manufactured synthetic opioids. including fentanyl and more and more stimulants. Since 1999, the rate of overdose deaths has increased by more than 250%. States can also negotiate with manufacturers to purchase naloxone in bulk at a discounted price. Massachusetts negotiated with a pharmaceutical wholesaler to offer its municipalities, through the State Office of Pharmacy Services, a discounted bulk purchase option to supply naloxone to local agencies (e.g., emergency response, law enforcement, health services, education).455 The Massachusetts Legislature also established the Municipal Naloxone Bulk Purchase Trust Fund in 2015. which provides community revenue and settlement funds from lawsuits filed by prescription workers. Opioid manufacturers. and, more recently, legislated funds.46 The bill offsets the cost of naloxone for fire and police programs;47 In 2018, the law was amended to allow nonprofits to participate in the trust fund program.48 In 2017, 143 municipalities, 10 school districts, and two sheriff`s departments used the fund to purchase naloxone.49 Law enforcement officers are often the first to respond to 911 calls about possible overdoses. But many police departments still do not equip their officers with naloxone, even though law enforcement officers can be successfully trained to recognize signs of overdose and properly administer naloxone.16 States can issue policies that prepare these uniformed responders and allow them to administer naloxone immediately upon arrival at the scene of an overdose.
Police officers may detain and administer naloxone under local or state standing orders or naloxone access laws, and are generally not responsible for administering naloxone.17 People who use drugs, as well as their families and friends, are most likely to witness an overdose and are therefore in the best position to respond immediately to an overdose. States may adopt policies that authorize and encourage the distribution of naloxone to laypeople and its administration by laymen. Drug overdose is a national epidemic. Opioids, alone or in combination with other drugs or alcohol, are responsible for the majority of these deaths. An opioid overdose is reversible due to rapid administration of the drug naloxone. Good Samaritan overdose laws can grant immunity from lawsuits to those who seek emergency help for someone with an overdose and are associated with an about 15 percent reduction in overdose deaths. In 2019, non-Hispanic American Americans or Alaska Natives had a higher overdose death rate than any other race or ethnic group (30 per 100,000). Synthetic opioids increased 50-fold, with the exception of methadone overdose deaths The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that clinicians prescribe naloxone to patients at high risk of overdose, such as: those who have a high-dose opioid prescription or are prescribed a combination of opioids and benzodiazepines at the same time.5 After states began following these guidelines In 2017, concurrent naloxone prescribing rates among these patient populations increased, with the highest co-prescribing rates recorded in states that have officially introduced co-prescribing requirements.6 Opioid overdoses are typically through timely administration of the drug naloxone and provision of reversible emergency care. However, access to naloxone and emergency treatment is often limited by laws that emerged before the overdose epidemic and were developed for other purposes.
In an attempt to reverse this rise in preventable overdose deaths, many states have recently amended these laws to improve access to emergency care for opioid overdoses. States can develop training programs with local partners, as the Quincy Police Department in Massachusetts did when it launched the first naloxone law enforcement program in the country. In 2010, following an increase in opioid overdose deaths last year, QPD worked with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to train all police officers to recognize signs of overdose and administer naloxone. In the year since the program was implemented, Quincy`s overdose death rate dropped by 66%.18 Between 2010 and 2016, DPQ officials reversed more than 500 opioid overdoses, and the program is now a nationally recognized model for equipping law enforcement with naloxone.19 Psychostimulants with abuse potential (mainly methamphetamine) Overdose deaths have increased by 30 Prevention of substance use disorders is the first step in combating overdoses.