Medical amnesty bill passes unanimously in state Senate
A unanimous 38-0 vote, the state Senate passed a medical amnesty bill — House Bill 4393 protecting underaged, intoxicated students who seek medical attention from receiving Minor in Possession of Alcohol citation
“I do know that for a lot of students had been advocating for this type of legislation that a lot of energy over the last several years has been expended raising the case for this type of reasonable approach — especially to protect the safety of our students who find themselves in the circumstances that the bill seeks to address.
State Rep. Jeff Irwin (D–Ann Arbor), a supporter of the bill, said he thinks the vote today was a good thing.
“It will be positive, for I think, public safety and public health to make sure people who are in trouble get the help they need,” Irwin said. “In the past, young folks were worried about criminal consequences for seeking medical attention for themselves and for friends and now this barrier is gone.”
Irwin said he does not foresee any continuing controversy related to the bill.
“I think the bill enjoyed broad partisan support because it just makes so much sense,” he said.
State Rep. Anthony Forlini (R–Harrison Township) sponsored the bill and said he is also happy that the bill is “moving forward” in the legal system.
“It’s moving in the right directions,” he said. “I hope to get this done quickly so as we get into the prom season and whatnot we can bring help to those kids that maybe have done wrong and need to be helped.”
Forlini added that he thinks the bill hasn’t had much controversy due to the care that went into writing it.
“We took a lot of time writing the bill to make sure it wasn’t going to be abused, to make sure it wasn’t going to cause problems for law enforcement,” he said.
The bill is currently back on the desks of the state House of Representatives due to an amendment added to the bill.
Central Michigan Student Lawyer Todd Levitt said ” It’s about time a bill was passed that addressed this issue” Todd went on to say that in the past individuals would not seekk medical treatment when needed due to fear of an MIP.
Todd Levitt has been representing CMU Students for more than 18 years and can be reached for a free consultation at 989-772-6000