Governor Maggie Hassan issued the following statement after today signing House Bill 270, granting immunity from arrest, prosecution, or conviction to a person who requests medical assistance to save the life of an overdose victim:
"The rising rate of heroin and opioid overdoses is one of the most pressing public health and safety challenges facing our state, requiring a multi-pronged approach of prevention, treatment and recovery to address. While we work to strengthen our prevention and treatment efforts through measures like our bipartisan health care expansion plan, we must also do everything that we can to save lives when an overdose takes place, including our efforts to increase the safe and effective use of Narcan.
"House Bill 270 will build on those efforts and help us save lives by encouraging people to seek emergency medical assistance for themselves or others without fearing prosecution for possession. And through our efforts with legislators from both parties, we developed a narrower bill to address some of the concerns of the Attorney General's Office and the law enforcement community. I thank Representative Bouldin and the bipartisan group of legislators who worked this session to help us save more lives in the midst of this opioid epidemic."