Pubdate: Wed, 05 Jun 2013
Source: Newsday (NY)
Copyright: 2013 Newsday Inc.
Contact:  http://www.newsday.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/308
Author: Kevin Deutsch

LANDMARK STEVEN KOVACS BILL TACKLES DRUG OVERDOSES

New York would become the first state in the nation to enact into law
a requirement that someone with knowledge of a person overdosing on
drugs report it to authorities or be held legally responsible, under
legislation being considered in Albany.

The landmark bill is being championed by Joni Kovacs, 46, of Jericho,
whose son Steven, 22, overdosed on prescription pills in Binghamton in
July 2009. Steven Kovacs, a Jericho native, was with several people
who watched him gasp for air over the course of five hours without
notifying authorities, his mother said.

Known as the Steven Kovacs Law, the legislation was drafted by Sen.
Jack Martins (R-Mineola) and passed the state Senate's judiciary
committee Tuesday. The full Senate is expected to vote on the bill
next week, with the state Assembly expected to take up the
legislation, which would hold parties responsible under civil law,
before the current session ends June 20.

"Steven's Law needs to pass because it will keep people alive," said
Joni Kovacs, who with her family has spent several years pressing
lawmakers to take action on the issue. "While it cannot bring back my
son to me, it will, in fact, save many children in New York State and
save countless parents from enduring the grief and pain I suffer every
day since I lost my son."

Martins said he was moved to write the bill after learning how Steven
Kovacs died. The Jericho native had majored in psychology at
Binghamton University and graduated with honors before enrolling in a
doctorate program. Along the way he became addicted to Adderall, used
to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and Xanax, used to
treat anxiety, as study aids while at Binghamton University, his
mother said.

Four adults in the home where Kovacs overdosed took no action for five
hours while he lay dying, his mother said. Martins' bill, in
explaining the justification for its passage, says that "a young man .
. . was left to die in a private residence following a social gathering."

Good Samaritan laws providing immunity from prosecution on criminal
charges in such cases have passed in New York and several other
states. These laws generally bar prosecution for a person's possession
of drugs, drug paraphernalia or underage drinking if they call
authorities to save an overdosing person. The Steven Kovacs law is
believed to be the first that ensures civil liability for people who
fail to report medical emergencies occurring in their residence,
Martins said.

"I wish we didn't need to pass a law for people to use common decency,
but unfortunately people need to be reminded," Martins said.

Drug overdoses are the number one cause of accidental death in New
York, exceeding traffic fatalities, statistics show. National studies
have shown that in as many as half of all overdose cases, no one with
the dying person calls for help.

Addiction experts on Long Island said they support the bill and will
work toward its passage.

"If it encourages folks to pick up the phone and make the call that
prevents a death, by all means we should have the law in place," said
Jeffrey Reynolds, executive director of the Long Island Council on
Alcoholism and Drug Dependence. "This goes a step further than the
current laws and conveys the liability in very clear terms."
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