Summary:
Good Samaritan Policies (also known as Medical Amnesty Policies) are life-saving measures that enable people to make responsible decisions by shielding them from punishment when they call for medical help during an emergency relating to alcohol or other drugs. Since the threat of punitive policies can often cause hesitation during confusing and stressful party situations, the existence of a Good Samaritan Policy is essential to ensuring that people are able to stay alive and receive help when they are in trouble.
According to SSDP's research, there are at least 89 schools with Good Samaritan Policies on the books. More than half of these policies cover situations involving all substances, while just under half cover only those involving alcohol.
New Mexico also has a state-wide 911 Good Samaritan Law that provides protection from drug possession charges when a person calls 911 during an overdose emergency. Other states, including Illinois, Maryland, Rhode Island, and Washington are considering similar legislation.
Since Students for Sensible Drug Policy launched its Campus Change Campaign in 2005, we have played an integral role in the growing trend of Good Samaritan Policies across the country. SSDP chapters that have recently worked with their schools to pass the policies include the College of William & Mary, Franklin Pierce University, the University of Connecticut, and the University of Georgia.
Talking Points:
- Good Samaritan Policies have been proven to be effective at saving lives. A 2006 study in the International Journal of Drug Policy found that emergency calls doubled after Cornell University's Good Samaritan Policy was enacted in 2002, although alcohol abuse rates have remained relatively constant.
- Good Samaritan Policies shouldn’t be viewed as "get out of jail free cards" or rewards for binge drinking. Rather, they provide students with the clarity they need in order to make responsible, life-saving decisions during confusing and stressful party situations. Every minute spent worrying about judicial consequences is another minute it will take for help to arrive. That minute can very literally be the difference between life and death.
- Campus administrators are correct in wanting to send the right message. And a Good Samaritan Policy would send the message that campus officials care more about keeping students alive than punishing them. A message against the dangers of binge drinking or drug abuse should never have to come in the form of a student's obituary.
- More than half of the schools with Good Samaritan Policies provide coverage for situations involving all drugs, not just alcohol. This is logical, since marijuana is often involved in party situations and can serve as a deterrent to calling for help, whether or not the drug was involved in the overdose. We should also remember that the abuse of other illegal drugs and prescription medications can have dire consequences, which we should seek to mitigate by enacting all-inclusive Good Samaritan Policies.
- The primary intention of a Good Samaritan Policy isn't to reward those
who make the decision to call for help when a friend is in trouble.
Rather, the policy enables and empowers students to make that decision
when they would otherwise hesitate. It is a preemptive policy that
promotes responsible behavior rather than a reactive policy that
rewards responsible behavior after the fact.
- Good Samaritan Policies are only effective if they guarantee amnesty in writing (usually in the student code of conduct) and the policy is widely publicized. If a school has the unwritten practice of excusing students from punitive consequences during emergency situations, but students don't know about it, then it is like having no such policy at all.
- Follow-up evaluations and counseling are fundamental components of any Good Samaritan Policy. Amnesty is only applied when students complete appropriate counseling and treatment. The key is that these followups be nonpunitive so that they don't serve as a deterrent to calling for help.
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