What's happening
This bill directs the New York health commissioner to study and report on the link between pharmaceuticals and suicide.
Why it matters
Potential to inform safer prescribing practices. By examining the correlation between pharmaceuticals and suicide, the study could highlight which medications may increase suicide risk, leading to improved guidelines and more careful monitoring by healthcare providers.
Impact on public health policy. The findings and recommendations from the study might influence state or national policies on drug approval, warning labels, and mental health screenings, aiming to reduce suicide rates.
Focus on real-world outcomes. By requiring data on suicide attempts before and after exposure to any drug, the study emphasizes actual patient experiences and outcomes, which could uncover overlooked risks or protective effects.
Accountability and transparency. Mandating a report to state leaders ensures that the issue gains legislative attention and that findings are shared with policymakers and the public, increasing transparency around pharmaceutical safety.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Study Drug-Suicide Link
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
Senator · Senate District 38
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to health
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
7010
IN SENATE (Prefiled)
January 8, 2020
Introduced by Sen. CARLUCCI -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
AN ACT in relation to requiring the commissioner of health to conduct a study relating the correlation between pharmaceuticals and suicide
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. (a) The commissioner of health is hereby authorized and directed to study the issues, implications, practices and correlations between pharmaceuticals and suicide.
(b) Such study shall include, but not be limited to, the number of suicide attempts pre-exposure and post-exposure to any drug, and any other topic or issue required to conduct such study.
(c) The commissioner of health shall submit a report including recommendations and findings based on this study to the governor, the temporary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly and the chairs of the senate and assembly standing committees on health no later than December 31, 2020.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14415-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act in relation to requiring the commissioner of health to conduct a study relating the correlation between pharmaceuticals and suicide
Purpose or general idea of the bill
To commission a study to determine the relationship between exposure to a given drug and suicide.
Summary of provisions
Section one of the bill authorizes the commissioner of health to direct a study on the relationship between pharmaceuticals and suicide.
Section two of the bill sets the effective date.
Justification
Harvard Data Science Review recently published an article by Gibbons, R. et al. (2019), which studied the post-exposure risk of suicidal events for 922 medications currently in circulation. Of them, ten were deter- mined to have post-exposure increases in suicidal events. These ten medications included commonly used medications that are not associated with increases in suicidal ideation, such as Prednisone, a commonly used steroid to treat asthma; and Azithromycin, which is commonly used to treat bacterial infections.
New York State residents deserve to know if the medications they are using have a risk of increasing suicidal ideations. The department of health should commission a study to examine post-exposure changes in suicidal events and take the necessary steps to address their findings.
Legislative history
None.
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
Minimal.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.