Tyler’s Law

This bill tells the U.S. health agency to look into fentanyl testing in hospital emergency rooms and then issue guidance on what hospitals should do. First, within one year, the agency must study how often ERs test overdose patients for fentanyl, the cost, the benefits and risks to patients, and how testing affects privacy and the patient–doctor relationship. After the study, within six months, the agency must give guidance on whether ERs should routinely test overdose patients for fentanyl, how to make sure clinicians know what their standard drug tests include, and how testing might affect future overdose risk and health outcomes.

Key points

• Who is affected: People treated for overdoses in hospital ERs, ER clinicians, and hospitals.
• What changes: A national study on fentanyl testing in ERs, followed by guidance on whether and how to test as a routine step.
• When: Study due within 1 year of the law taking effect; guidance due within 6 months after the study is finished.