On April 6th, 2012, Governor Rick Scott signed Florida’s 911 Good Samaritan Act (SB 278). Although the law won’t technically take effect until October 1st, Florida is now the 13th state to enact some form of Good Samaritan legislation. More specifically, Florida is now the 6th state to extend immunity to possession of controlled substances (joining NM, WA, CT, NY, and IL) and the 6th state to add help-seeking as a mitigating factor (joining NM, AK, MD, WA, UT, and IL).
ORIGINS OF FLORIDA’S 911 GOOD SAMARITAN ACT:
From 2003 to 2009, a total of 16,550 drug overdose deaths were recorded by Florida medical examiners. The annual number of deaths increased 61.0%, from 1,804 to 2,905. In 2009, approximately eight drug overdose deaths occurred each day.
In order to learn more about the nature of Florida’s overdose epidemic, law enforcement officials conducted in-depth case reviews of 353 overdose deaths that occurred in Palm Beach County from 2007 through 2010. This study revealed that 66% of overdose deaths occurred while others were present. Furthermore, 56% of the time witnesses were aware that the decedent had overdosed and 38% of the time witnesses recognized that the decedent needed medical help. Despite that fact that witnesses were commonly present and aware of the need for medical assistance, only 25% of overdose decedents were taken to a hospital. These findings heightened concern among law enforcement officials that fear of police involvement might be deterring a 911 call or contributing to the abandonment of overdose victims. Working with representatives from the Narcotics Overdose Prevention and Education Task Force, they began looking into potential sponsors for legislation modeled on bills enacted in New Mexico and Washington.
During the 2011 session, Rep. Mack Bernard (D-West Palm Beach), a Florida State University alumni, and Sen. Maria Sachs (D-Boca Raton) filed Florida’s 911 Good Samaritan Act. Florida’s 911 Good Samaritan Act protects people who seek or obtain medical assistance from prosecution for possession of a controlled substance. This law is designed to save lives because when someone in America overdoses, a call for help is made less than 50% of the time and fear of police involvement is the most common reason for not calling 911.
Florida’s 911 Good Samaritan Act came remarkably close to final passage during the 2011 session and received widespread, bipartisan support. House Bill 91 passed unanimously with 119 yeas. The Senate companion (Senate Bill 1146) moved unanimously through two committees before it simply ran out of time. Members ofFlorida State University’s SSDP chapter were present at every committee hearing, passionately articulating the case for this life-saving legislation. Amongst them was Jon Bowes, who was recently elected as the new President of the FSU chapter. “The chairman of one committee thanked SSDP specifically, saying he was encouraged by seeing young people supporting their beliefs. It was unfortunate to see such a sensible bill with strong support not progress further than it did merely because of time constraints,” said Bowes. FSU SSDP contacts also facilitated endorsements from the Florida Police Benevolent Association, the Florida Sheriffs Association, and the Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association.
SUCCESS
2012 would prove to be the year for Florida’s 911 Good Samaritan Act. Despite a few obstacles, including a brief period where the bill was temporarily postponed after a legislative aide and committee staff failed to adequately address questions about the scope of the immunity, once again the bill received overwhelming bipartisan support.
Once the bill cleared the Legislature, SSDP mobilized chapters across the state to urge the Governor to sign it, including creating action centers to generate positive communication toward Gov. Scott and generating media to help spread awareness of the bill.
FSU SSDP chapter Public Relations Chair, James Tarkington, began engaging in extensive media outreach, disseminating press releases at the Florida Press Center to generate positive coverage. “It’s very important that the public know about this new law,” said Tarkington. “Everyone is a potential witness to an overdose; so every single person you tell could save a life, even if they don’t tell anyone else.”
A letter penned by former FSU SSDP chapter President Cody Swingle was published, in most cases entirely unedited, by three major Florida newspapers:
- http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/letters/wednesdays-letters-bill-protects-those-who-seek-help/1223270
- http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/fl-911-samaritan-act-forum-20120405,0,6603066.story
- http://www.bradenton.com/2012/04/04/3978950/911-good-samaritan-act-will-prevent.html
- https://secure2.convio.net/dpa/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=811
- http://ssdp.org/action/florida
- http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/letters/wednesdays-letters-bill-protects-those-who-seek-help/1223270
- http://www.examiner.com/libertarian-in-west-palm-beach/when-calling-911-lands-you-jail
- http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/editorials/fl-thegood-editorial-dl-20120312,0,5095731.story
- http://www.newschief.com/article/20120311/NEWS/203115004/-1/sports01?Title=Scott-should-sign-these-bills