Today, a law will come into place that D.C. Council members hope will lower the number of drug overdose-related deaths in the District. The “Good Samaritan Overdose Prevention Amendment Act of 2012” works by allowing more leniency for both the individual suffering the overdose and the witnesses, encouraging bystanders to call 911 without fear of prosecution by law enforcement for evidence found at the scene. Most notably, it provides protection to those who call 911 for minors suffering from alcohol poisoning, even if they were the ones who provided the alcohol.

The key points include:

• No evidence found at the scene may be used against the person who called emergency services or the individual in need of treatment. Even if controlled substances or paraphernalia are found at the scene, if it was through the process of providing health care, charges cannot be brought against the witnesses.
• This provision includes the possession or distribution of alcohol to a minor (Just sayin’). It should be noted that the law provides “limited protection” for underage drinkers as well as adults 25 years old or younger who give alcohol to minors over the age of 16. Interestingly, the language in alcohol-related cases is more restrictive than in drug-related cases, in reference to the “Omnibus Public Safety Amendment Act of 2006″, which includes the specifics pertaining to D.C.’s alcohol policy. Check out the section titled “Contributing to the delinquency of a minor.”
• If a bystander administers an opioid antagonist (a drug that rapidly reduces the absorption rate of opiates, such as heroin, into the nervous system), regardless of how the opioid antagonist was obtained, the bystander cannot be prosecuted for administering “it in good faith to treat an overdose.” This measure is significant because earlier this year, the Centers for Disease Control found that 3 of 4 pharmaceutical overdose deaths were caused by opioid analgesics, commonly found in prescription drugs. Pharmaceutical drugs were the leading cause of death in overdoses in 2010.

The law also encourages the D.C. Department of Health to disseminate information about the law to the public.

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Growing opposition from medical and academic communities may threaten the continued production of Four Loko, a hyper-caffeinated malt liquor dubbed “blackout in a can.”

The main concern? The mix of caffeine and alcohol causes heavier, longer periods of drinking.

Four Loko consumption at college campuses across the country have caused a recent frenzy of backlash against the cheap beverage. Nine students at Central Washington University were hospitalized after drinking Four Loko. Ramapo College, a small public school in New Jersey, banned the drink last month. And earlier today, Harvard University officials warned students to avoid Four Loko. (Even the New York Times jumped on the trend.)

According to Mary Jane Reen (COL ’11), GERMS director of public relations, the D.C. Department of Health is now keeping tabs on Four Loko-related hospitalizations.

“The D.C. Department of Health has asked all EMS agencies in the District of Columbia to report any cases involving consumption of “Four Loko” energy drinks,” Reen wrote in an email. “In order to maintain patient confidentiality, any identifying information is removed before the report is sent to the Department of Health.”

Several states, including New Jersey, Montana, and Utah, are already looking to restrict or ban the sale of caffeinated alcoholic beverages. While D.C. Health Department officials have yet to confirm they are doing the same, Four Loko nonetheless appears to be going the way of Tilt and Sparks.

Call us crazy, but we don’t think a Lokomotive ban will stop college students from finding cheap alcohol.