Narcan event slated at Cornell Scott Hill Health Center in Ansonia

Logan, state commissioner to host opioid awareness forum in Hamden

Logan, R-Ansonia, represents the 17th District.

Klarides-Ditria of Seymour lists new state laws effective Jan. 1

Dear Neighbors, As 2017 comes to an end, we prepare for a number of new laws to take effect starting January 1, 2018.  These new laws may have an impact on you, your business, or our communities. I therefore encourage you to take a look at the full list of laws that can be found by clicking here. I have listed some of the more noteworthy legislation below.  Please feel free to contact me with any questions or clarifications regarding the implementation of these laws. AN ACT PREVENTING PRESCRIPTION OPIOID DIVERSION AND ABUSE - Public Act No. 17-131 - requires prescriptions be transcribed electronically to safeguard against over prescribing, reduces the maximum number of days for a prescription from seven to five for minors and allows patients to request drugs other than opioids be prescribed. Summary AN ACT CONCERNING THE DEFINITION OF A VETERAN FOR A CERTAIN HONOR AND CERTAIN BENEFIT - Public Act No. 17-83 – broadens the eligibility criteria for certain veterans' benefits, allows additional people to receive a service ribbon and medal, be buried in a Connecticut veterans' cemetery, or have veteran status indicated on their driver's license or identity card. Summary Please pass this information along to those who may benefit from knowing what to expect in the New Year in the State of Connecticut. New legislation typically goes into effect on January 1st, July 1st, or October 1st in a calendar year, although a few laws go into effect immediately upon passage. As always, please do not hesitate to contact me should you have any questions or concerns relating to state government at Nicole.Klarides-Ditria@housegop.ct.gov or at (800) 842-1423. Sincerely, State Rep. Nicole Klarides-Ditria

Candlelight vigil in Oxford to highlight opioid awareness

Logan applauds passage of opioid legislation

HARTFORD - State Sen. George S. Logan, R-Ansonia, today stood in strong support of HB 7052, An Act Preventing Prescription Opioid Diversion and Abuse.

“I am thrilled to report that this legislation was unanimously adopted by the Senate this afternoon in concurrence with the House,”

State Sen. George S. Logan

Logan said. 
“Communities and families across the state have been increasingly impacted by opioid addiction and prescription drug abuse, this bill works to address this crisis by taking proactive steps to educate and bring awareness to opioid drug abuse.”

The bill makes several changes to prevent and treat opioid drug abuse, including:

• Requiring individual and group health insurers to cover medically necessary detox treatments
• Requiring a treatment facility to use admissions criteria developed by the American Society of Addiction Medicine, which urges admission regardless of health status or addiction levels
• Limiting access to controlled substances by allowing certain registered nurses employed by home health care agencies to destroy or dispose of them
• Requiring practitioners, when prescribing opioids, to discuss with all patients, rather than only minors, the risks associated with opioid drug use
• The bill reduces, from a seven day supply to a five day supply, the maximum amount of an opioid drug a practitioner may prescribe to a minor
• The bill requires prescriptions for controlled substances to be electronically transmitted – with a few exceptions including if the prescriber demonstrates that they do not have the technological capacity
• The bill also creates a standing order – a non-patient specific prescription to licensed pharmacists to prescribe Naloxone

“I want to applaud the hard-work that was put into this bill,” said Logan. “This common-sense legislation encourages prescribers to increase awareness of opioid addiction, it takes steps to help those in need and fosters the proper disposal of unused opioids. The passage of this legislation should be seen as a positive step forward in addressing an epidemic that does not have one solution and in the end I think it will help save lives.”

HB 7052 now heads to the governor’s desk and awaits his signature.

Logan (www.SenatorGeorgeLogan.com) represents Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Bethany, and Derby; and parts of Hamden, Naugatuck, and Woodbridge.  

He can be reached at George.Logan@cga.ct.gov and at 800-842-1421.


This is a press release from Logan's office.

Valley lawmakers applaud House passage of opioid bill

Pictured from left, state Rep. Nicole Klarides-Ditria, state Rep. Linda M. Gentile, state Rep. Themis Klarides. /Submitted photo

State Representatives Linda Gentile, D-Ansonia, Themis Klarides, R-Derby, and Nicole Klarides-Ditria, R-Seymour, are pleased to announce passage in the House of HB7052, a far-ranging bill which continues efforts to address opioid addiction. 

  

"This comprehensive bill is so desperately needed to address the ever growing opioid crisis that we have been experiencing over the last several years,” Gentile said. “This crisis has impacted virtually every state in our country, including Connecticut. It has affected families of every socio-economic class and we have seen a number of deaths right here in our Valley communities. No family should ever have to face such senseless, tragic loss. It is my hope that this bill will reduce these untimely deaths and reverse this heartbreaking trend of opioid addiction."

“Opioid abuse and overdose has overwhelmed society and demands that we take action to combat this scourge. Every week we read and hear about overdose deaths. Everyone knows someone who has been lost to this epidemic, and we need to wake up and take steps so that makes sense and will result in positive results,’’ House Republican Leader Klarides said.

"The opioid crisis has hit our communities and the state of Connecticut extremely hard," Klarides-Ditria said. "This legislation takes proactive steps to educate the public and children about the dangers of opioid abuse and will help us halt the spread of the opioid crisis. All of us in Hartford, Republicans and Democrats, are working together to find solutions to curb this disease once and for all."

Three of the more integral parts of the bill, AAC Preventing Prescription Opioid Diversion and Abuse are: 

•  Require that prescriptions be transcribed electronically to safeguard against over prescribing
•  Reduce the maximum number of days for a prescription from seven to five for minors
•  Allow patients to request drugs other than opioids to be prescribed.

Klarides said these are common sense ideas that will address the explosion of opioid abuse and overdose that has affected every segment of society in recent years.

The bill passed 146-0 and now heads to the Senate for consideration.

This is a press release from the House Democrats office.

Film, discussion of opioid abuse epidemic slated in Seymour

Conroy: State establishes hotline for treatment of opioid addiction

State Rep. Theresa Conroy (D-Seymour, Beacon Falls, Derby) announced today the state now has a 24-hour hotline for people seeking treatment for addiction to prescription opioids and heroin.

State Rep. Theresa Conroy

“There were more than 700 opioid-related deaths in Connecticut in 2015 – the numbers of deaths have been climbing significantly each year,” Conroy said. "This is a public health crisis that requires a broad response.” Conroy is an APRN.

The legislature this year approved a wide-ranging bill to limit opioid prescriptions and require first responders to carry Narcan, the life-saving overdose antidote.

The state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) has opened 1-800-563-4086. 

Callers will be immediately connected to a walk-in treatment clinic.


This is a press release from Conroy's office.

Valley lawmakers hail passage of bill to combat opioid crisis

HARTFORD - State Rep. Theresa Conroy, D-Seymour, Beacon Falls, Derby, state Rep. Linda M. Gentile, D-Ansonia, Derby, and state Sen. Joseph J. Crisco, Jr., D-Woodbridge, praised passage of legislation that will impact the state’s opioid crisis. 

The House of Representatives Monday approved HB 5053, An Act Increasing Access To Overdose Reversal Drugs.

The legislation will improve access to Naloxone, often known as Narcan, a medication that is used to treat opioid overdose; cap first-time painkiller prescriptions to a seven-day supply; strengthen the prescription monitoring program; and release health care professionals and good Samaritans from liability when they administer an opioid antagonist, such as Narcan, to treat an overdose.

“Heroin and prescription drug overdoses are claiming more lives in Connecticut every year,” Conroy, an APRN, said. “Expanding access to Narcan is an important step in this public health crisis. Allowing more first responders to carry Narcan will save lives.”

The seven-day cap on painkillers applies to first-time adult prescriptions and all prescriptions for minors, with exceptions for certain medical conditions.

“There are very few families who have not been touched in some way by the devastating impact of an opioid overdose,” Gentile said. “It is a public health epidemic that affects every socio-economic class, every ethnic background ,and every age.”

The bill requires that local emergency medical services are equipped with and trained in the use of Narcan. It also allows doctors to write prescriptions for the overdose reversal drug without first getting permission from a patient’s health insurer.

“The world has awoken to the public health emergency that is prescription opioid addiction and the havoc it is wreaking on our friends and families,” Crisco said. “This bill contains multiple provisions to help alleviate some of the pain and suffering caused by these addictions.”

Public Health Committee House Chair, state Rep. Matt Ritter (D-Hartford) said, “This bipartisan legislation acts on two fronts by making it easier for those currently struggling with opioid addiction to access Narcan and preventing new cases of addiction by capping first-time pain killer prescriptions. We have a responsibility to all those who have lost a loved one to this deadly addiction to address Connecticut’s opioid epidemic, and today we took an important step forward.”

This is a press release from CT House Democrats.

Opioids 101 presentation slated May 9 at Shelton Intermediate School

This release was provided by the Shelton Police Department.  



Below is a graphic shared from the VSAAC website that demonstrates the impact that opioid abuse has had on our community. 

Conroy, colleagues unveil major opioid prescription law

State Rep. Theresa Conroy speaks at a press conference on new opioid prescription regulations. In the foreground is a photo of Nick Kruczek of Guilford who died of a heroin overdose in 2013. His mother (in yellow) attended the event. / Submitted photo

HARTFORD -  State Rep. Theresa Conroy (D-Seymour, Derby, Beacon Falls) and the legislature’s Public Health Committee co-chairs state Sen. Terry Gerratana (D-New Britain) and state Rep. Matt Ritter (D-Hartford) today called for the passage of SB 352, An Act Concerning Prescriptions for and the Dispensing of Opioid Antagonists.

The bill would limit first time adult opioid prescriptions for non-chronic pain to a seven-day supply, and limit all prescriptions for minors to a seven-day supply in which case the prescribing practitioner must discuss the risks associated with opioids with the minor's parent or guardian.

“Connecticut has recognized that the opioid epidemic is a public health crisis,” Conroy said. “Prescription painkillers are often the first step on a path to devastating addiction.”

“Connecticut, like many other states throughout the country, is facing epidemic levels of opioid drug abuse and addiction. No community is safe from this threat,” said Gerratana, Senate Chair of the Public Health Committee. "We are passing this bill today because no family should have to suffer this kind of pain. Deaths from drug overdoses, many of them caused by misuse of prescription opioids, have become the leading cause of injury death in the United States. We are in the midst of a public health crisis, and swift action is needed to help reverse this alarming trend.”

Last week, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention advised doctors to refrain from giving opioid prescriptions to patients suffering from non-chronic pain, stating that the risks for such patients include addiction and death. 

The CDC also reported that from 2000 to 2014, the numbers of overdose deaths involving opioids, which include prescription opioids as well as heroin, increased by 200 percent.  

The organization has called combating opioid use and overdoses a “national priority.” 

'Public health crisis' 

If passed, SB 352 and limited all adult first-time opiate prescriptions to a seven-day supply would represent a groundbreaking development in the fight against prescription drug abuse. 

The current cap on first time prescriptions in Connecticut is a 30-day supply. If passed, SB 352 would make Connecticut only the second state in the United States to limit prescriptions to one week for non-chronic pain.

“Opioid addiction is a public health crisis in our state and across the country,” Ritter said. “We know that for many people, that addiction begins with taking legally prescribed pain killers. This legislation ensures that people who receive pain killers for a routine medical event aren’t being prescribed double or triple the amount they need. We have an opportunity through this bill to save lives by preventing many new cases of opioid addiction.” 

Last year, the CDC reported that people who use prescription drugs are 40 times more likely to try heroin. Every year there is a significant increase in heroin deaths.  From 2014 to 2015, heroin deaths increased by 27 percent in Connecticut and according to the state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, 723 people died in 2015 from heroin, cocaine or other drugs such as morphine.

This is a press release from Conroy's office.

Conroy hails bill to increase access to opioid antagonists

HARTFORD - State Rep. Theresa Conroy, D-Seymour, this week hailed House passage of legislation that addresses the state’s opioid crisis (HB6856).

Between 2009-2014, there were more than 2,000 accidental and unintentional opioid involved deaths that occurred in 150 of Connecticut’s 169 cities and towns.

State Rep. Theresa Conroy 

“The opioid epidemic is a public health crisis across Connecticut that requires aggressive action by the state,” Conroy said.

The legislation improves the monitoring and reporting of narcotic prescriptions by prescribers and pharmacists.
It requires practitioners, before prescribing greater than a 72-hour supply of any controlled substance, to check the patient's record in the prescription drug monitoring program and to review the patient's record at least every 90 days if prescribing for prolonged treatment with narcotics.

“Prescription abuse is often the first step,” Conroy said. “When prescriptions become too costly or difficult to find, heroin becomes the next step.”

The legislation also increases access to life-saving opioid antagonists. Naloxone, or Narcan, is an opioid antagonist that works to reverse the effects of opioids. Nalaxone is not addictive and has few side effects.

"It is effective in saving the lives of people who have overdosed on an opioid like heroin," Conroy said. "This legislation will allow pharmacists to dispense Naxalone without a prescription."

The bills await action by the state Senate.


This is a release from Conroy's office.