History. Code 1981, § 16-13-5 , enacted by Ga. L. 2014, p. 683, § 1-3/HB 965.
Editor’s notes.
Ga. L. 2014, p. 683, § 1-1/HB 965, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: “This part [Part I of the Act] shall be known and may be cited as the ‘Georgia 9-1-1 Medical Amnesty Law’.”
Ga. L. 2014, p. 683, § 1-2/HB 965, not codified by the General Assembly, provides:
“WHEREAS, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution (‘AJC’), more than 600,000 Americans used heroin in 2012, which is nearly double the number from five years earlier according to health officials; and
“WHEREAS, the AJC article states that ‘[t]he striking thing about heroin’s most recent incarnation is that a drug that was once largely confined to major cities is spreading into suburban and rural towns across America, where it is used predominantly by young adults between the ages of 18 and 29’; and
“WHEREAS, the Drug Enforcement Agency has noted that the ‘skyrocketing’ increase in the availability of cheap heroin is a direct reaction by cartels to legislative efforts to regulate and restrict access to opiate prescription painkillers; and
“WHEREAS, Stephen Cardiges of Lawrenceville died of an accidental heroin overdose; and
“WHEREAS, Randall Brannen of McDonough died of an accidental overdose; and
“WHEREAS, Stephen and Randall are a part of a growing trend of drug overdose victims in Georgia; and
“WHEREAS, those who were with them did not call 9-1-1 to seek medical assistance, which could have saved their lives, because of a fear of prosecution for the possession and use of illegal drugs; and
“WHEREAS, Overdose Reporting/Medical Amnesty legislation, or ‘9-1-1 Good Samaritan Laws,’ have been passed in 14 states, including Florida and North Carolina, and is under consideration in several more; and
“WHEREAS, in North Carolina, it is believed that at least 20 lives have been saved since passage last year of similar legislation, and in Massachusetts it is believed that more than 120 lives have been saved since passage of similar legislation in that state in 2012; and
“WHEREAS, overdose deaths result from a variety of substances, including prescription painkillers, heroin, methamphetamine, designer drugs, and alcohol.”
Ga. L. 2014, p. 683, § 3-1(b)/HB 965, not codified by the General Assembly, provides, in part, that: “Parts I and II of this Act shall apply to all acts committed on or after such effective date [April 24, 2014].”
Law reviews.
For article, “From the Crime Scene to the Courtroom: The Future of Forensic Science Reform: The Overdose/Homicide Epidemic,” see 34 Ga. St. U. L. Rev. 983 (2018).