Chapter 94C of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 18C the following new section:-

Section 18D. (a) For the purposes of this section, the term “opioid antagonist” shall mean, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, any drug approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of persons experiencing an opioid-related overdose.

(b) If a practitioner issues a prescription to a patient for an opioid contained in schedule II of section 3, the practitioner shall offer the patient a prescription for an opioid antagonist if at least 1 of the following conditions is present: (i) the patient is prescribed any dose of an opioid when a benzodiazepine has been prescribed in the past 30 days or will be prescribed at the visit; or (ii) the patient presents with an increased risk of overdose, including a patient with a history of overdose, a patient with a history of substance use disorder or a patient at risk for returning to a high dose of opioid medication to which the patient is no longer tolerant.

(c) If a practitioner prescribes an opioid antagonist under paragraph (b), the practitioner shall provide education on the use of an opioid antagonist and overdose prevention to the patient, and where applicable, a designee of the patient, or, for a patient who is a minor, to the minor’s parent or guardian.