HARRISBURG, Pa. — A new Pennsylvania law will require EMS providers to report suspected overdose incidents beginning in 2026, a move state officials say could improve overdose tracking and help identify dangerous drug trends sooner.
The data will be submitted to a statewide mapping system operated by the Pennsylvania State Police, the Pennsylvania Capital-Star reported.
The change stems from a new law sponsored by Sen. Doug Mastriano (R-Franklin). He said the Overdose Information Network previously relied largely on law enforcement reports, missing an estimated 80% of fatal and nonfatal overdoses where EMS responded, according to the Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
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Mastriano said centralized reporting could help first responders identify dangerous “bad batches” of drugs, including those with high levels of fentanyl.
Pennsylvania recorded 4,719 overdose deaths and 37,371 nonfatal suspected overdoses in 2023, state health data shows. Deaths fell 29% in 2024 to 3,341, though the latest report does not list a nonfatal total.
Senate Bill 89, now Act 18, passed unanimously and was signed in June. It took effect on Jan. 1. A separate Mastriano bill, Senate Bill 92, cleared the Senate in April on a 33-16 vote and would create a mandatory 25-year minimum sentence for selling fentanyl that results in a death, aiming to prevent dealers from receiving reduced sentences.
EMS1 readers respond
“I think it would have been helpful if this article specifically pointed out that the bill allows EMS to meet reporting requirements simply by completing their normal EMS PCR for the call. There is no additional reporting tool or workload imposed upon front line EMS clinicians, but the bill does require creation of data bridges between the EMS PCR and overdose tracking datasets in the Commonwealth. Modernizing overdose event reporting by allowing EMS to meet reporting requirements through existing EMS patient care records enables the use of high-quality clinical data without imposing a second, duplicative documentation burden on front-line clinicians or breaching confidentiality. EMS is there first, providing care in real time, and this modernization supports the workforce by maximizing administrative efficiency and strengthening the systems that enable timely, effective response.”
“Great story.”
“Isn’t this a little bit of a patient privacy issue? Like ‘what a patient tells me in the back of the ambulance what medication he or she took, can I really share that with a law enforcement agency?’ Just wondering.”
