STATE WOULD MANDATE OVERDOSE REPORTING

BOSTON - Overdose in Massachusetts and the state's going to know about it.
The state would mandate doctors, hospitals and clinics to report cases
within 24 hours under a measure adopted yesterday by the Senate. The data
will help measure the size of a problem that has grown to epidemic
proportions North of Boston, said Sen. Thomas M. McGee, D-Lynn, a
co-sponsor of the measure added to the state budget.

"This isn't about criminally prosecuting these people who overdose," he
said. "This transcends communities, economics, race."

It would require every physician attending or treating an overdose to
report it to the state Department of Public Health within 24 hours.
Managers of hospitals, clinics or other institutions would be subject to
the same requirement.

The reports would be confidential and regulated by the Department of Public
Health. A violator would face a fine of not less than $50 and not more than
$100. Essex District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett said reporting
overdoses, which could show what he described as an epidemic, would help
Massachusetts when it seeks federal funding for anti-drug efforts.

Blodgett believes state statistics on overdoses are as much as 25 percent
below what they actually are because they are reported as something other
than an overdose. He said some are listed as heart failures, while others
are simply described as "medical calls."

"I really welcome this tool," Blodgett said. "This isn't so much law
enforcement as it is public awareness. Often times we get numbers that are
a year or two old." Sen. Bruce E. Tarr, R-Gloucester, called the reporting
requirement a sensible step to fight substance abuse.

"This has been recognized as one of the most significant threats to public
safety," Tarr said. "People always ask what they can do, and this reporting
is one of those steps they can take to help solve the problem." Tarr said
the mandatory reporting would help prevent future deaths by helping law
enforcement and public health officials spot high-abuse areas.
Authorities would then police the area and promote prevention efforts in
that area. "This is critical for prevention," he said.

Tarr said hospitals and medical providers now voluntarily submit overdose
information to the Department of Public Health.

The Massachusetts Hospital Association had no immediate comment on the
requirement.

The House does not have the provision in its version of the $24 billion
budget, which means it would be resolved as part of a special committee
sometime next month.

McGee said mandatory reporting was raised during an addiction forum earlier
this year at Merrimack College. He said Blodgett estimated every one of the
county's 34 communities has had an opiate or heroin overdose. Massachusetts
is not alone in not tracking overdose statistics. The Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration, part of the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services, does not keep national data. Few states even
report overdose information.

However, six states for the first time will voluntarily report overdose
data to the agency next month as part of its Drug Abuse Warning Network,
said Leah Young, spokeswoman for SAMHSA. The six are New Hampshire, Maine,
Vermont, Utah, Maryland and New Mexico.

"We'd be delighted (for Massachusetts) to follow suit," Young said. The
overdose reporting requirement comes two weeks after Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey
unveiled a major anti-drug plan, funded through a $9.1 million supplemental
budget.

The plan targets early prevention and treatment efforts, including
voluntary student drug testing. Schools interested in testing their
students would be eligible for $100,000 from the state, with $80,000 of the
grant dedicated to counseling. Parents would have to sign off on whether
their child gets tested. Healey estimated more than 120,000 people in
Massachusetts need substance abuse treatment services. The state spends
about $250 million a year on substance abuse services.