The Kentucky Senate has adopted far reaching legislation to tackle the state's heroin-related problems. It's unusual to see action on the floor of the first week of the so-called short session. Among other things, the bill calls for allowing first responders access to a drug designed to reverse the effects of a heroin overdose.
Louisville Senator Morgan McGarvey wonders about going further with that concept. "We should consult with health care professionals and see if this is something we should make available on a more wide scale basis,” said McGarvey. “So perhaps it is available in our residence halls and our schools for instance for the young cheerleader in Louisville who passed away this past summer from a heroin overdose."
The legislation would also increase funding for treatment and aim to prevent accidental needle sticks for investigating police. The bill sets aside about $12 million for increased treatment inside jails and in the community. Northern Kentucky Senator John Schickel told his fellow senators, treatment alone isn't enough. "I have personal friends who have spent thousands, over a hundred thousand dollars on treatment for their loving children that they love so much, and would spend a million dollars if they had to and had the means to do it,” he said. “Guess what? Their children are dead."
Schickel says the provision that calls for tougher penalties for heroin traffickers is an important part of the measure. The Kentucky House is expected to take up its own anti-heroin bill in February. ?
