Governor comes the MSBSD to sign HB 202; Bill will allow every school to carry opioid overdose reversal meds

On August 30, Governor Mike Dunleavy stopped at the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District office in Palmer to signed HB 202, ‘Schools: Overdose Drugs and Correspondence Programs,’ relating to the availability and administration of opioid overdose drugs in public schools.

“All of us have been touched by this issue. We’ve all had friends and family members or know somebody that’s been touched by this issue. And this is only going to be impacted by all of us joining ranks and doing everything we can across the board to reduce these incidents of overdose and substance abuse, and a lot of it starts with our education system,” said Governor Dunleavy.

The bill will allows for each school district to have a person trained to administer an opioid overdose drug is on site whenever the school buildings are open, including activities after normal school hours.

“The original intent of this bill was to ensure that schools were equipped with opioid overdose reversal medications like Naloxone and Narcan. It’s a crucial measure in our ongoing opioid crisis,” the Governor said before signing the bill into law. “This legislation, aligns with the recommendations of the Department of Health’s 2023 Opioid Response Report and it reinforces our commitment to following expert guidance in tackling the opioid epidemic.”

Representative DeLena Johnson of Palmer, who sponsored the bill, said that having the doses of Narcan or Naloxone in the schools is just one step in combating the opioid crisis, as the schools are often the center of the communities, especially in rural areas affected by the crisis and may be the only facility with overdose medication available.

“I really believe that this is a lifesaving, Alaska-wide piece of legislation that can be extremely helpful.”

Johnson also thanked the DOH for going “above and beyond” to help find additional funding to make the legislation possible. “It just wouldn’t have been possible without the creative and diligent work of the Department of Health.”

DOH Commissioner Heidi Hedberg noted that between 2022 and 2023, there has been a 40% increase in the number of opioid overdose deaths, and the HB 202is an opportunity to save a life.

“This bill will provide Naloxone in each one of our schools, and that is a step forward in our harm reduction strategy.” She reiterated that this was just one step in a multi-faceted approach to reducing and combating opioid overdoses.

“We’re really focused on keeping drugs out of Alaska. That’s first and foremost,” adding that the second step is early intervention and prevention with a focus on how students and parents are being educated to allow for conversations surrounding substance use disorder.

Harm reduction measures like HB 202 are also key in the fight against substance use disorder. She said the DOH is committed to resupplying every school with Naloxone and training teachers and staff on the proper administration of it.

Hedberg also said that the state is developing a robust plan to increase access to treatment as well as community support for those in recovery.

While the bulk of the bill had to do with the availability of Naloxone, there are other pieces of the bill that are also important the department or a district that provides a homeschool or correspondence study program shall annually provide an individual learning plan for each student enrolled in the program developed in collaboration with the student, the parent or guardian of the student, a certificated teacher assigned to the student, and other individuals involved in the student's learning plan.

“In the final form of the bill, it also included uncodified law that grants the Department of Education and Early Development the authority to write temporary regulations…(that) will remain in effect until June 2025,” Governor Dunleavy remarked, speaking about the amendment to HB 202 that allows the department or school district that provides a homeschool or correspondence study program to provide an annual student allotment to parents or guardians of a student enrolled after a recent Superior Court ruling that struck down key provisions of Alaska’s correspondence education program.

The bill also directs the state board of education to develop regulations supporting the need for educational planning and oversight within the correspondence study programs. These provisions will expire July 2025.

Representative Johnson remarked that the section addressing correspondence programs was added in on the last day of session. “On the last day of session, we were able to get the amendment into the bill with broad support and it was truly an example of legislators of all stripes in both bodies coming together and acting decisively for the good of Alaskans.”