S2099B

The New York State Senate voted 53-0 to reconsider passage of S2099B, a bill amending the Public Health Law, sponsored by Sen. Harckham. The motion to reconsider, made by Sen. Serrano, resulted in the bill being restored to the Third Reading Calendar. Following the reconsideration vote, Sen. Serrano offered amendments to the bill, which were received by the chamber. The bill and amendments retained their place on the Third Reading Calendar for further consideration.

The New York State Senate passed S2099B, legislation to expand access to fentanyl test strips through the state's retail pharmacy network. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Harckham and known as Matthew's Law, passed on a 61-0 vote. The measure would establish standing orders allowing pharmacies to distribute fentanyl test strips as a harm reduction tool, similar to the existing system for Narcan distribution. The bill was prompted by the 2020 fentanyl overdose death of Matthew Horan; his sister Kailey brought the proposal to lawmakers, arguing that access to fentanyl test strips could have saved her brother's life by alerting him to the presence of fentanyl in substances he was consuming. Harckham noted that while harm reduction advocates are committed to their work, they are underfunded and too few in number, making the pharmacy network approach essential to scaling up access to this lifesaving tool across New York State.