Montana committee hears bill to shield parents, pregnant people from penalties when seeking overdose or prenatal care

HELENA — Representative Ron Marshall, R-House District 87, on Thursday presented House Bill 50 to the Montana House Health and Human Services Committee, seeking to add parental protections to the state's Good Samaritan provisions and to revise the Help Save Lives from Overdose Act so parents and pregnant people who seek medical help during overdoses or prenatal care are protected from certain criminal charges and from having a positive drug test be used as the sole factor in child abuse and neglect investigations.

The bill’s sponsor said the measure is meant to remove a barrier that discourages people with substance use disorders from seeking medical care. “What this bill is…if you’re going in and you’re assisting somebody who is experiencing a medical emergency, overdose…basically you cannot be charged with a crime,” Representative Ron Marshall said during his opening remarks.

Proponents said the bill aims to reduce fear among pregnant and postpartum people that seeking care will…