SENATOR ANWAR LEADS SENATE PASSAGE OF PILOT PROGRAM SUPPORTING OVERDOSE PREVENTION CENTERS

Today, State Senator Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor), the Senate Chair of the Public Health Committee, led the passage of Senate Bill 7, legislation that will support Connecticut introducing a pilot program supporting overdose prevention centers.

“I’m grateful that the rate of overdoses in Connecticut declined in recent years, but our state is still averaging more than two people – friends, parents, children, siblings, each one of them a real person with a life and identity – die each day to overdoses,” said Sen. Anwar. “We need more resources and opportunities for them to seek and receive the help they need. I have traveled to see overdose prevention centers and I have studied their outcomes. To put it simply, they work, and our communities will benefit from this pilot. I’m grateful to see this proposal advance and am excited to see it become law.”

These locations support individuals with substance use disorder with intent to reduce overdose deaths and connect individuals struggling with resources that can help them. Sen. Anwar has championed the concept for several years, seeking to ensure the pilot can develop four centers in different municipalities across the state in 2026 should the legislation pass.

Each of the four centers would employ licensed health care providers with experience treating substance use disorder, who would monitor individuals using substances including providing medical treatment should an individual there experience an overdose. Center staff would also offer materials allowing individuals to test the safety of substances and provide referrals to them connecting them to substance use disorder treatment or other mental health treatments.

The legislation also seeks to create an advisory committee to make recommendations on public health and safety as well as center operations.

These centers will be funded using private donations.
When the legislation was introduced and considered in the Public Health Committee earlier this year, families of individuals who have died from overdoses, individuals in recovery from substance use disorder and families of struggling individuals supported the legislation at the State Capitol.

The Drug Policy Alliance reported that, as nearly 100,000 individuals per year still die of overdoses in the Untied States, new intervention strategies remain important. The centers are proven to save lives and prevent overdoses, reducing the spread of infectious diseases and cutting down on the stigma of substance use. They additionally reduce litter, public drug use, and reduce municipal funds spent on overdose safety response; a study found a single Overdose Prevention Center in Rhode Island could save its community $1.1 million each year.

Overdose prevention centers operating in New York City have reversed more than 1,500 overdoses, the DPA added, with 100% of visitors seeking treatment aid being connected to appropriate providers.

The bill passed by a 25-10 tally. With today’s passage in the Senate, the bill next heads to the House floor.