If we look at the example of what Washington state did when they enacted their good Samaritan legislation in 2010, they followed that up about a year later with a survey of all the Seattle patrol officers during roll call. That survey had an incredibly high response rate of 97%. I've never seen a survey with that high a response rate. They asked those officers if they were aware of the good Samaritan legislation.
To give the committee some context, 67% of those officers who presented had an overdose in that prior year. Only 16% of those roll-call officers were aware of the good Samaritan legislation and of those 16%, only half of those were aware that it included bystanders as well as the victim in that legislation.
The police force took that information, and realized this wasn't good, and they started an education initiative that involved the narcotics police officer, public health, and the legal people to all get together. They made a video that they would show at every roll call for all new officers. I think roll call is mandatory; other people probably know more about that than me. That got the message out to every new recruit and it was repeated over and over again to police officers to make them aware of that. Federally we're lacking a drug czar, for lack of a better word, who can quarterback the need for a national response to this opioid overdose crisis. I think a part of that response would be something like getting the word out on good Samaritan legislation. That would include police, harm reduction people, and people with real lived experience, and people who are doing opioid substitution therapies. Public health would be a part of that as well.