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Governor Hochul is confronting the state's growing opioid overdose crisis with several new bills.
Speaking at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, the Governor said the bills "remove barriers to treatment" both across the state and among the incarcerated. They include decriminalization of syringes, a mandate for medication-assisted treatment in jails, and the establishment of an online directory for opioid-reversal drugs like naloxone. Additionally, opioid-reversal drugs can no longer be used as evidence of a crime in court, as New York will also now expand the number of crimes for which people can be diverted for substance abuse treatment rather than incarceration.