Aaron's Law
The Indiana law that expanded access to naloxone, helping make this life-saving medication available to individuals, families, and communities across the state.
Naloxone can quickly reverse an opioid overdose and restore breathing, giving someone another chance at life.
Birth of Aaron's Law
When Aaron died, Justin Phillips had never heard of naloxone. Like many families at the time, she didn’t know a medication existed that could reverse an opioid overdose. Determined to change that, she partnered with Indiana Senator Jim Merritt to create Aaron’s Law (SEA 406), which Governor Mike Pence signed into law in 2015.
The law expanded access to naloxone, allowing family members, friends, and community organizations to obtain and administer it without an individual prescription. A 2016 amendment established a statewide standing order, making naloxone even more accessible across Indiana.
Aaron’s Law laid the foundation for Overdose Lifeline’s continued work to expand naloxone access, educate communities, and help save lives throughout Indiana.
Meet Aaron
Aaron Sims was 20 years old when he lost his life to a heroin overdose in October 2013. He was a son, brother, grandson, teammate, and friend whose life continues to inspire Overdose Lifeline’s mission.
From the time he was a little boy, Aaron loved sports. He was entrepreneurial, hardworking, and deeply empathetic. He proudly called himself the “worker man” because he wanted to earn his own way and dreamed of making his own mark on the world.
Today, Aaron’s legacy lives on through Overdose Lifeline’s mission to prevent overdose, expand access to life-saving resources, and support individuals and families affected by substance use disorder.
Good looking, charming and clever, a lover of skateboarding and the Red Hot Chili Peppers […]. He loved sports from the beginning, insisting on dressing as a baseball player for Halloween at age 2 and playing Catholic Youth Organization football by third grade.
Excerpt from the IndyStar story published in 2014, written by Matthew Tully.
