06/16/2026
One of the first big accomplishment to change the environment 🥳
Thirteen years ago, atTAcK addiction championed the 911/Good Samaritan Law with the General Assembly and Governor Jack Markell. We knew that lives could not be changed, unless they, first, could be saved. atTAcK addiction's Liz and Marty Perkins and Dave Humes gave heartbreaking firsthand accounts that the prospect of individuals being arrested for low-level drug crimes because they were using in the same place as someone who had overdosed prevented them from calling 911 for help.
From those early days of advocacy came a simple mantra: First, save the life.
And it is the same, today, with Senate Bill 249. Individuals are reluctant to seek treatment or even to confide in someone that they are using if they are carrying paraphernalia and risk the possibility of arrest. We can't hope to convince people to go to treatment if they're more worried about going to jail.
Senate Bill 249, which creates a clear, regulated framework for harm reduction programs and prevents individuals from being arrested, charged and prosecuted simply for possessing items that reduce the risk of overdose and disease transmission, has already passed the Senate. atTAcK addiction urges the House Health & Human Development Committee and the full House to approve this legislation - and help us save the next life.