Pubdate: Wed, 25 May 2005
Source: Salem News (MA)
Copyright: 2005 Essex County Newspapers
Contact:  http://www.salemnews.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3466
Author: Dan  Tuohy
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Test)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/heroin.htm (Heroin)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/oxycontin.htm (Oxycontin/Oxycodone)

SENATE URGES OD REPORTING

District Attorney Says Proposal Would Step Up Anti-Drug Efforts

BOSTON - Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett applauded a 
measure that would mandate doctors, hospitals and clinics to report drug 
overdoses within 24 hours.

"I really welcome this tool," Blodgett said of the proposal adopted 
yesterday by the Massachusetts Senate. "This isn't so much law enforcement 
as it is public  awareness. Oftentimes we get numbers that are a year or 
two old." Blodgett said reporting overdoses, which could show what he 
described as an epidemic use of opiates like heroin and OxyContin, would 
help Massachusetts when  it seeks federal funding for anti-drug efforts. He 
believes state statistics  underestimate overdoses by as much as 25 percent 
because they are now often reported as heart failures, or simply described 
as "medical calls." The data will help measure the size of a problem that 
has grown to epidemic proportions North of Boston, said Sen. Thomas M. 
McGee, D-Lynn, a co-sponsor of  the measure added to the state budget.

"This isn't about criminally prosecuting these people who overdose," he 
said. "This transcends communities, economics, race."

The budget amendment would require every physician attending or treating an 
overdose to report it to the state Department of Public Health within 24 
hours.  Managers of hospitals, clinics or other institutions would be 
subject to the  same requirement.

The reports would be confidential and regulated by the Department of Public 
Health. A violator would face a fine of not less than $50 and not more than 
$100. Sen. Bruce E. Tarr, R-Gloucester, called the reporting requirement a 
sensible step to fight substance abuse.

"This has been recognized as one of the most significant threats to public 
safety," Tarr said. "People always ask what they can do, and this reporting 
is one of those steps they can take to help solve the problem." Tarr said 
the mandatory reporting would help prevent future deaths by letting law 
enforcement and public health officials spot high-abuse areas of the 
state.  Authorities would then police the area and promote prevention 
efforts in that  area.

Tarr said hospitals and medical providers now voluntarily submit overdose 
information to the Department of Public Health.

The Massachusetts Hospital Association had no immediate comment on the 
requirement or whether it is a violation of doctor-patient privilege. The 
House does not have the provision in its version of the $24 billion budget. 
For it to become law, the measure would have to be included in the final 
budget hammered out by a special committee next month. McGee said mandatory 
reporting was raised during an addiction forum earlier this year at 
Merrimack College. He said Blodgett estimated every one of the county's 34 
communities has had an opiate or heroin overdose, though no hard data exists.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 
part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, does not keep 
national data, and few states even compile overdose information. However, 
six states for the first time will voluntarily report overdose data to 
SAMHSA next month as part of its Drug Abuse Warning Network, said Leah 
Young,  spokeswoman for the agency. The six states are New Hampshire, 
Maine, Vermont,  Utah, Maryland and New Mexico.

"We'd be delighted (for Massachusetts) to follow suit," Young said. The 
overdose reporting requirement comes two weeks after Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey 
unveiled a major anti-drug plan, funded through a $9.1 million supplemental 
budget.

The plan targets early prevention and treatment efforts, including student 
drug testing. Schools that opt to screen their students would be eligible 
for $100,000 from the state, with $80,000 of the grant dedicated to 
counseling. Parents would have to sign off on whether their child gets 
tested. Healey estimated more than 120,000 people in Massachusetts need 
substance abuse treatment services. The state spends about $250 million a 
year on substance abuse services.
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MAP posted-by: Elizabeth Wehrman