Cuomo Signs Bill Into Law Requiring Death Certificates State Which Opioid Caused Fatal Overdose

CITY HALL -- If someone dies of an opioid overdose, the type of the opioid that killed them will now be required to be written on death their certificate if it is known, thanks to a bill Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law Tuesday.

Under current law, there is no requirement for death certificates to state which opioid was used in a fatal overdose. The legislation will make that change immediately.

"The opioid crisis we are facing has been a significant problem for far too long. Currently there is no requirement that the death certificate include the specific opioid involved. This has led to a lack of information about which types of opioids are the most deadly,” said State Sen. John Brooks, a Democrat from Long Island, who introduced the bill in the Senate. “By recording this information, more data will be available to better track which opioids are causing the most deaths and more communities in need will be better equipped to combat this crisis.”