Advocates gathered at the Indiana Statehouse Wednesday to rally support for a group of harm reduction bills. One of their priorities — this year's testing strips bill — was heard in a House committee.

Testing strips can help identify when illicit substances are laced with drugs like fentanyl. Care, Not Cuffs community organizer Tony Hostetler said last year’s bill was halted by a Senate committee chair.

“Hopefully this year, we'll settle for a hearing as a win—as a victory,” Hostetler said. “But we want to get it pushed through.”

The issue is personal to Hostetler.

“I had a friend of mine — he would not use opiates. And he would be alive today if he would have been able to test that Xanax that he took,” he said. “Because he would not have taken it had he known.”

House Bill 1167 eliminates testing strips from criminal laws on the possession of controlled substance paraphernalia.

Tracy Skaggs is the executive director of Project Recovery. She said removing criminal penalties for having these strips can save the lives of people with substance use disorders.

“You can’t make a decision on what you do not know. So, at that point, you’re playing Russian roulette with your life,” Skaggs said.

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Casey Dunn is in recovery. A friend of hers died from a fentanyl overdose.

“If the test strips were made available, people who use — that aren’t ready to be in recovery — would have an opportunity to save themselves,” Dunn said. “Like. They don’t do it on purpose, just to die.”

The bill passed the House Courts and Criminal Code Committee Wednesday unanimously.

Advocates also called for support for bills to expand syringe exchange service programs, Senate Bill 38, and to remove prior authorization requirements for opioid use disorder, House Bill 1112.

The Care, Not Cuffs chapter of Hoosier Action also wants to challenge several housing measures they say “double down” on failed policies.

Hostetler said some of those measures — like Senate Bill 157 and Senate Bill 12 — criminalize homelessness.

“But it’s such a broad bill that it also opens up for: if you have a disgruntled landlord, to evict you in 48 hours instead of going through the proper eviction channels,” he said.

Neither of those bills have received committee hearings yet.

Lauren is our digital editor. Contact her at lauren@ipbnews.org or follow her on Twitter at @laurenechapman_.