[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4112 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4112

    To provide protections from prosecution for drug possession to 
individuals who seek medical assistance when witnessing or experiencing 
                  an overdose, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

               April 11 (legislative day, April 10), 2024

  Mr. Booker (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Markey, and Mrs. Capito) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To provide protections from prosecution for drug possession to 
individuals who seek medical assistance when witnessing or experiencing 
                  an overdose, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Samaritan Efforts to Ensure Key 
Health Emergency and Life-saving Protections Act'' or the ``SEEK HELP 
Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act--
            (1) the term ``controlled substance'' has the meaning given 
        that term in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 
        U.S.C. 802);
            (2) the term ``emergency response providers'' has the 
        meaning given that term in section 2 of the Homeland Security 
        Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101);
            (3) the term ``opioid overdose reversal drug'' means a drug 
        approved under section 505 of the Federal Food, Drug, and 
        Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 355) that--
                    (A) is indicated for the partial or complete 
                reversal of the pharmacological effects of an opioid 
                overdose in the human body; and
                    (B) has moved in or affecting interstate or foreign 
                commerce;
            (4) the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Health 
        and Human Services; and
            (5) the term ``seek medical assistance'' means--
                    (A) reporting a drug overdose or other medical 
                emergency to a law enforcement authority, an emergency 
                response provider, the 9-1-1 system, a poison control 
                center, or a medical or drug treatment provider; or
                    (B) assisting another individual who is making a 
                report described in subparagraph (A).

SEC. 3. GOOD SAMARITAN PROTECTIONS FOR DRUG OVERDOSE RESPONSES.

    (a) Civil Liability Protections for Administration of Opioid 
Overdose Reversal Drugs.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), an 
        individual shall not be liable in a civil action in a Federal 
        or State court for harm caused by the emergency administration 
        of an opioid overdose reversal drug to another individual who 
        is or reasonably appears to be suffering a drug overdose if the 
        individual administers the opioid overdose reversal drug in 
        good faith.
            (2) Exceptions.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply with respect 
        to harm caused by willful or criminal misconduct, gross 
        negligence, reckless misconduct, or a conscious, flagrant 
        indifference to the rights or safety of the victim who was 
        harmed.
            (3) Rule of construction.--With respect to a person who 
        administers an opioid overdose reversal drug to another 
        individual, this section supersedes the law of a State only to 
        the extent that the State has no statute or regulation that 
        provides such a person with immunity in a civil action for the 
        use of an opioid overdose reversal drug, as described in 
        paragraph (1).
    (b) Criminal Liability Protections for Seeking Medical Assistance 
for an Overdose.--
            (1) Definition.--In this subsection, the term ``covered 
        individual'' means an individual who--
                    (A) in good faith and a timely manner--
                            (i) seeks medical assistance for an 
                        individual experiencing or reasonably appears 
                        to be experiencing a drug overdose; or
                            (ii) seeks medical assistance for himself 
                        or herself for a drug overdose; and
                    (B) did not seek the medical assistance during the 
                course of the execution of an arrest warrant, search 
                warrant, or other lawful search or seizure.
            (2) Liability protection.--A covered individual shall not 
        be subject to prosecution, civil asset forfeiture, or 
        revocation of supervised released under section 404 of the 
        Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 844) for possession of a 
        controlled substance if a law enforcement agency, or other 
        government agency, is made aware of the possession solely based 
        on the fact that the covered individual sought medical 
        assistance as described in clause (i) or (ii) of paragraph 
        (1)(A).
            (3) Admissibility and seizure of evidence or contraband.--
        Nothing in this subsection shall be construed--
                    (A) to limit the admissibility of evidence in 
                connection with the prosecution of--
                            (i) an offense with regard to an individual 
                        who does not qualify for the protections under 
                        paragraph (2); or
                            (ii) an offense not described in paragraph 
                        (2) that is committed by an individual who 
                        qualifies for the protections under such 
                        paragraph; or
                    (B) to limit any seizure of evidence or contraband 
                otherwise permitted by law.
    (c) Public Awareness Campaign.--The Secretary, in consultation with 
the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, shall carry 
out a public awareness campaign regarding the liability protections 
under this section.
    (d) Use of JAG Funds.--Section 501(a)(1) of title I of the Omnibus 
Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10152(a)(1)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(J) Training programs for law enforcement 
                officers of States and units of local government 
                regarding legal protections for individuals seeking 
                medical assistance in connection with a controlled 
                substance overdose.''.

SEC. 4. USE OF BLOCK GRANT FUNDING FOR PUBLIC AWARENESS CAMPAIGNS AND 
              INITIATIVES.

    (a) In General.--A State receiving a grant under section 1921 of 
the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-21) may use amounts 
described in section 1922(a)(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-22(a)(1)) 
to--
            (1) conduct a public awareness campaign regarding the 
        overdose Good Samaritan law of the State;
            (2) provide training to criminal justice professionals, 
        stakeholders (including health care providers), and the general 
        public on applicable overdose Good Samaritan laws; and
            (3) to the extent possible, share data with the Secretary 
        regarding the impact of overdose Good Samaritan laws of the 
        State on individuals experiencing an overdose, which shall 
        include the number of calls seeking medical assistance that 
        were received by a law enforcement agency, the 9-1-1 system, a 
        poison control center, or a medical or drug treatment providers 
        for seeking medical assistance in the event of a drug overdose.
    (b) Definition.--In this section, the term ``overdose Good 
Samaritan law'' means a statute providing protection from liability 
relating to seeking medical assistance in connection with a controlled 
substance overdose or administering an opioid overdose reversal drug.

SEC. 5. GAO REPORT TO STUDY EFFECTIVENESS AND IMPLEMENTATION.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit 
to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on 
the Judiciary of the House of Representatives a report on evaluating 
the implementation of Good Samaritan laws for drug overdose and the 
effectiveness of grant funding provided to States and localities for 
awareness campaigns related to those laws.
    (b) Contents.--The report required under subsection (a) shall--
            (1) assess the extent to which States and localities have 
        implemented and enforced Good Samaritan laws for drug overdose;
            (2) evaluate the effectiveness of the laws described in 
        paragraph (1) in encouraging the reporting of overdoses and the 
        provision of timely medical assistance;
            (3) an estimate of the number of individuals impacted by 
        the laws described in paragraph (1), including the number of 
        individuals who have received legal protections or immunities 
        under such laws;
            (4) analyze the impact of the laws described in paragraph 
        (1), including--
                    (A) an assessment of changes in overdose-related 
                fatalities, emergency department visits, and the use of 
                naloxone or other overdose reversal interventions; and
                    (B) data on the number of calls received for 
                overdoses before and after the implementation of such 
                laws;
            (5) evaluate the effectiveness of grant funding provided to 
        States and localities for the purpose of spreading awareness 
        about the laws described in paragraph (1);
            (6) assess the reach and impact of educational campaigns, 
        community outreach initiatives, and training programs aimed at 
        informing the public, healthcare providers, law enforcement 
        personnel, and other relevant stakeholders about the 
        protections and benefits provided by the laws described in 
        paragraph (1);
            (7) identify any barriers or challenges encountered during 
        the implementation of the laws described in paragraph (1) and 
        associated awareness campaigns, including--
                    (A) examining the legal, logistical, resource-
                related, or cultural factors that may impede successful 
                adoption and utilization of the laws; and
                    (B) exploring any challenges faced by individuals 
                seeking help or reporting overdoses due to potential 
                legal repercussions;
            (8) highlight any best practices identified in States and 
        localities that have effectively implemented the laws described 
        in paragraph (1) and conducted successful awareness campaigns;
            (9) provide recommendations for improving the 
        implementation and impact of the laws described in paragraph 
        (1) and optimizing the use of grant funding for education and 
        outreach efforts; and
            (10) if multiple States or localities have implemented 
        different variations of the laws described in paragraph (1), 
        include a comparative analysis of their respective approaches 
        identifying variations in outcomes, effectiveness, or 
        challenges faced and providing insights for potential 
        improvements or standardization of the laws.
    (c) Cooperation and Access.--Federal agencies and relevant State 
and local authorities shall cooperate with the Comptroller General of 
the United States and provide access to necessary information and data 
to facilitate the completion of the report required under subsection 
(a).
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