New York State Senate Passes 23 Bills Geared Toward Curbing Heroin Use
ALBANY, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The New York state Senate on Monday approved nearly two dozen bills intended to curb heroin use, including a measure to allow schools to administer a powerful heroin and opiate antidote.
On Monday, the Senate passed 23 of the 25 bills introduced last month following a series of forums held around the state on heroin and opioid use.
``There's one place we shouldn't be lenient and we shouldn't turn our backs,'' said sponsoring state Sen. Jack Martins (R-Mineola.)
The legislative package seeks to limit prescriptions of opioids for acute pain and allow schools to issue naloxone, an antidote for heroin overdoses. The latter provision would cover whoever administers the drug under the "Good Samaritan'' law, which protects people from potential arrest when they call for medical help from the scene of an overdose.
It also creates a statewide heroin awareness program and increases penalties for selling the drug, especially on playgrounds.
Experts said a crackdown on prescription drugs has pushed addicts to heroin, which is significantly cheaper and easier to obtain. Deaths from heroin overdoses in New York more than doubled from 215 in 2008 to 478 in 2012, according to the state Health Department.
Experts have said heroin from Mexico has flooded New York City, making Long Island a hot spot for distribution and usage.
With more than 30 heroin-related bills in the upper chamber from both sides of the aisle, some Democrats are wary that some of the measures simply increase criminal penalties.
Sen. Gustavo Rivera (D-The Bronx) took to the floor to voice his discontent with the way the majority coalition, Republicans who lead the Senate with a faction of independent Democrats, handled some of the legislation.
``It is unfortunate that the majority of these bills go in the opposite way it should be going,'' the Bronx Democrat said, adding that addiction is not a criminal issue, but a public health one.
Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan) also criticized some of the legislation saying that increased criminal penalties takes the state back 40 years to the tough, and failed, Rockefeller drug laws.
The bills were delivered to the Democratic-led Assembly who are currently holding their own forums.
You May Also Be Interested In These Stories:
(TM and © Copyright 2014 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2014 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
