Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Overdose Prevention Centers topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Public Health Committee raises concept for overdose prevention center pilot after divided roll call
Summary
The Connecticut General Assembly Public Health Committee voted to raise the concept of an overdose prevention center pilot program after a divided roll call; the vote clears the way for a public hearing but is not passage of a final bill.
The Connecticut General Assembly Public Health Committee on Jan. 22 voted to raise the concept of an overdose prevention center pilot program after a divided roll call, advancing the idea to the next stage of the legislative process but not approving a bill.
Committee members debated the proposal’s merits and risks before the roll call. Senator Summers said she would vote against the concept, citing conversations with law enforcement and her review of outcome data: “When I looked at the data that I could collect, the outcomes have not improved by having this available. So I am a no on this today.”
Senator Amor spoke in favor of raising the concept, citing long-term data on substance use and preventing deaths: “We have 40 years of data about, substance use and and prevention of deaths in the state of Connecticut ... The basic concept is you have to live to have rehab.” The motion to raise the concept was moved by Senator Anwar and seconded by Representative Martinez.
Representative Zukas also announced she would vote no, saying prior presentations lacked data showing recovery outcomes. Representative Redington Hughes said the program could “extend the life of the cycle of addiction” even if it reduces immediate mortality.
The chair reminded committee members that raising a concept is procedural: it permits a public hearing but does not itself enact law. “As we raise the concept, this would then require a public hearing, and that would be the next step in the process before any votes would occur to actually move the bill forward at all,” the chair said.
A roll call was then taken and recorded in the committee minutes. The roll-call entries captured in the transcript show multiple yes and no votes (see structured vote record below). Committee staff also noted that votes would be held open until 3 p.m. to allow remote and late in-person votes to be recorded.
Next steps: raising the concept places the pilot program proposal on the committee’s docket for a public hearing; the committee chair announced that the committee’s first public hearing of the session is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 3 at 11:30 a.m. No final policy or budget action was taken on the pilot program at the Jan. 22 meeting.
