Committee hears evidence and legal questions on EMS administration of buprenorphine; Law Department flags state preemption

Councilman Mark Conway opened a public hearing on Council Bill 25-0014, which would authorize Baltimore emergency medical services personnel to administer buprenorphine to patients after opioid overdoses under defined circumstances.

Conway framed the proposal as a life‑saving policy and criticized procedural barriers after the administration and the Law Department raised legal objections. He warned that if the Law Department's memo operates as a veto, “then the laws of the city will no longer be written by its elected representatives.”

Several health-care and harm-reduction witnesses urged adoption. Lauren Rech, program director and founder of MAT Clinics, described buprenorphine as “a life‑saving medication” with a long half‑life that can blunt withdrawal after naloxone reversal and create an opportunity to link patients to ongoing…