SENATE HEALTH, HUMAN SERVICES AND SENIOR CITIZENS COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

SENATE, No. 3803

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  JUNE 10, 2021

      The Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 3803.

      As amended, this bill permits paramedics to administer buprenorphine, which is a form of medication-assisted treatment that helps curb cravings resulting from opioid use disorder and partially blocks the effects of opioid use.

      Under the bill, a paramedic who has responded to an emergency as a member of a dispatched mobile intensive care unit may administer buprenorphine, under the medical direction of a licensed, supervising physician, to an individual following the emergent administration of an opioid antidote to the individual, provided that the paramedic administering the buprenorphine:  (1) is providing emergency medical services through a program that is registered with the United States Attorney General pursuant to subsection (j) of 21 U.S.C. s.823; (2) administers the buprenorphine consistent with all applicable requirements of federal law; and (3) has completed supervised comprehensive training and competency assessments within a mobile intensive care unit regarding which specific medical conditions necessitate the administration of buprenorphine, buprenorphine dosage requirements, and required medical documentation following the administration of buprenorphine.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

      The committee amendments require that a paramedic administering buprenorphine under the bill do so under the medical direction of a licensed, supervising physician.

      The committee amendments clarify that buprenorphine may be administered to an individual following the emergent administration of an opioid antidote to the individual, without reference to the person or entity that administered the opioid antidote.  As introduced, the bill required that a member of the paramedic’s mobile intensive care unit have administered the opioid antidote as a condition of the paramedic administering buprenorphine to the patient.