Suffolk County adopts Gio's Law to mandate police vehicles be equipped with EpiPens
The legislation is named after 14-year-old Giovanni Cipriano, who suffered a fatal allergic reaction called anaphylaxis after eating trail mix that contained a peanut product.
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Suffolk County officials announced the adoption of Gio's Law Wednesday to mandate that police vehicles be equipped with EpiPens.
The legislation is named after 14-year-old Giovanni Cipriano, who suffered a fatal allergic reaction called anaphylaxis after eating trail mix that contained a peanut product.
Cipriano's mother, Georgina Cornago, says she followed a now-outdated protocol of using antihistamines first to treat her son's peanut reaction, but it didn't work.
She drove her son to an urgent care that was closed and then reached for his EpiPen that she could not find.
Cornago then drove to a hospital, where Cipriano died on Oct. 18, 2013.
"We were only moments away, and I realized he had lost consciousness," Cornago says.
Cornago says things might have been different if they were able to call 911 and a first responder was able to meet them.
Suffolk County Legislator Dominick Thorne says the EpiPen is the "perfect pre-hospital drug" for an allergic reaction because it opens up airways and brings up blood pressure.
"We give EpiPens to 16-year-old camp counselors - why it took so long is beyond me - we give Narcan to save heroin or opioid overdoses," Thorne says. "We have oxygen in our patrol car to help those who can't breathe well."
The law was passed in New York state in 2019 but was not adopted by many counties.
Once the Suffolk County executive signs the law, it is expected to go into effect within 120 days.
News 12 reached out to Nassau County officials to see if they have a plan but has not heard back.
