SR 63 Louisiana Senate · 2026 Regular Session

HEALTH SERVICES: Requests the Louisiana Department of Health to study the feasibility of providing buprenorphine to paramedics.

This bill directs the Louisiana Department of Health to investigate whether paramedics can be authorized to administer buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid use disorder. The legislation specifically targets the state's emergency medical response system by exploring the feasibility of expanding this treatment option to paramedics. It does not mandate immediate changes but rather requires an official study to determine the practicality and safety of such a program. The bill focuses on policy research rather than implementing new laws or regulations at this stage.

Issues: ✓ Healthcare

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Apr 2026

Committee Review

Apr 2026

Senate Passage

Apr 2026

House Passage

Governor

Introduced Apr 8, 2026 Last action Apr 27, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

SR63 Original → SR63 Enrolled · 3 edits · Apr 27, 2026

MINOR

The bill was finalized and enrolled, changing the terminology to specifically target 'paramedics' rather than the broader 'first responders' and replacing the drug name 'Suboxone' with the active ingredient 'buprenorphine' to ensure legal precision. This shift narrows the scope of the requested study to a specific class of medical professionals while clarifying the exact medication under consideration for feasibility analysis.

Scope change

The scope was narrowed from a general request regarding all first responders to a specific request regarding paramedics.

ELIGIBILITY

The target audience for the medication study was changed from 'first responders' to 'paramedics'.

DEFINITION

The specific drug name 'Suboxone' was replaced with the generic term 'buprenorphine'.

TECHNICAL

The document header was updated from 'ORIGINAL' to 'ENROLLED'.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Apr 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

Senate amendments read and adopted. Read by title and adopted.

upper

Apr 15, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported with amendments.

upper

Apr 8, 2026

Introduced

Introduced in the Senate. Read by title and placed on the Calendar for a second reading.

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors