SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — A proposal moving in the Illinois House could help provide naloxone to people leaving jails and prisons if they were incarcerated for drug-related charges or have a substance use disorder.

Sponsors and advocates say studies have proven that an overdose is the leading cause of death for people recently released from correctional facilities. Although, the Illinois Sheriffs’ Association told the House Restorative Justice Committee Thursday that this could be an unfunded mandate for county jails.

"We don’t want to hamstring our counties fiscally on this," said Rep. Justin Slaughter (D-Chicago). "However, there are a significant amount of funds to do this."

House Bill 3662 passed out of the House Restorative Justice Committee on a 7-2 vote. The measure now moves to the House floor for further consideration.

"Certainly, the jail has naloxone on sight to be able to handle any overdose that happens within the jail," said Illinois Sheriffs’ Association Executive Director Jim Kaitschuk said. "But our staffing numbers are abysmal right now, so the number of correctional officers that can handle this and the space available for it is limited. In terms of the availability of product, at some point in time, the mandate will be unfunded."

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