Opioid Overdose Reduction Act of 2015
Latest action · Jun 26, 2015 Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedApr 15, 2015
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Opioid Overdose Reduction Act of 2015
This bill exempts individuals from liability for harm caused by the emergency administration of an opioid overdose drug under certain circumstances. (An opioid is a drug with effects similar to opium, such as heroin.) The individuals exempted from liability are:
- a health care professional who prescribes or provides an opioid overdose drug to an individual at risk of experiencing an opioid overdose or to another individual in a position to assist the individual, if the individual has been educated about opioid overdose prevention and treatment by the health care professional or as part of a government opioid overdose program;
- an individual who provides an opioid overdose drug for emergency administration to another individual authorized to receive it as part of an opioid overdose program; and
- an individual who administers an opioid overdose drug to another individual who appears to have suffered an opioid overdose if the individual obtained the drug from a health care professional or as part of an opioid overdose program and was educated by the professional or program in the proper administration of the drug.
These exemptions are inapplicable if the harm was caused by gross negligence or reckless misconduct.
States can preempt these exemptions by providing additional protections from liability for individuals that administer opioid overdose drugs, or by enacting legislation making the Act not applicable to state civil action involving only citizens from that state.
Cosponsors 6
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Apr 15, 2015 to Apr 12, 2016, with 2 there on the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-VA | Barbara Comstock | Original | Apr 15, 2015 |
| R-NH | Frank C. Guinta | Original | Apr 15, 2015 |
| R-WV | Evan H. Jenkins | May 13, 2015 | |
| R-IL | Robert J. Dold | May 13, 2015 | |
| D-WA | Rick Larsen | Nov 4, 2015 | |
| D-MA | Seth Moulton | Apr 12, 2016 |
Actions 4
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jun 26, 2015Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice.
- Apr 15, 2015Introduced in House
- Apr 15, 2015Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
- Apr 15, 2015Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E501-502)
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 707 | Opioid Overdose Reduction Act of 2015 | Identical bill | Mar 11, 2015 |
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Health.
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Apr 15, 2015Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov.