Underage drinkers, at least in Iowa, will let fear of legal repercussions keep them away from the emergency room. Student Body President Cole Staudt has seen this firsthand.

With a friend on the verge of alcohol poisoning in his care, Staudt was faced with a decision: Get his friend medical attention and face the police or avoid the hospital and put his friend’s life in danger. Staudt, like many other students, went for the latter.

The night didn’t end with Staudt putting his friend to bed, though. A simple decision to stay up and watch Netflix may have saved his friend’s life.

With his friend sleeping below him, Staudt eventually heard a gurgling sound as he was lying on the top bunk. Realizing that his friend was choking, Staudt jumped down, put him on his side and saved his life.

About three years later, when Staudt and Student Government Vice President Cody West were discussing policies to campaign on, they looked into passing a medical amnesty bill, and the idea stuck with Staudt because of his experience.

“Once I kind of made that connection to my personal history with this policy idea and we looked into it and were like, ‘Wow. Why haven’t we done this before,’” Staudt said.

Those protected by the bill would be individuals who “experience a medical emergency caused by the illegal possession or consumption of alcohol, such as underage consumption, open container or public intoxication,” according to a medical amnesty proposal. 

The proposal states that alcohol-related deaths are often the result of a friend putting a heavily intoxicated person to bed to “sleep it off.” The second most common excuse is “not wanting to get the victim in trouble.”

The first person to call for emergency services would be protected under medical amnesty as long as they remain with the victim until services arrive.

Other requirements include complete cooperation with the medical personnel and officers. Failure to comply would lead to the revocation of the medical amnesty bill.

Iowa is one of 14 states that has not implemented a medical amnesty law. Both blue states such as Illinois, and red states such as Texas have medical amnesty laws in place.  

People from both sides of the political spectrum view medical amnesty as breaking down barriers so students don’t hesitate seeking out medical assistance.

Implementing a medical amnesty bill does not increase alcohol use, according to a Cornell University study.  

Student Government has worked with the University of Iowa and University of Northern Iowa on the proposal.

Both universities have their own policies similar to medical amnesty, but these policies only protect students from academic discipline, not from law enforcement.

Hunter Flesch, student body president at Northern Iowa, and Rachel Zuckerman, student body president at Iowa, both were involved in the project.

Zuckerman recalled first hearing of Staudt and West’s plans to get the bill past and how it fit perfectly with what she and her vice president, Laura Freeman, were trying to do.

They wanted to try and find policy to push that didn’t have to do with tuition because that had been a primary focus in the past. 

This was the case for Iowa State as well. Staudt said legislators were just glad to not be talking about budget and tuition, and they were more willing to hear them out.

“This isn’t something that Student Government has done before,” Staudt said. “We don’t pursue things really too much outside of budget and tuition, so we don’t have the structure really to tell how this is going to work.”

Gov. Terry Branstad said in the medical amnesty proposal that Iowa is making it clear that reducing barriers to save lives is a priority of the state. 

Branstad said this after signing a bill allowing the administration of the opioid antagonist Naloxone, also known as Narcan, which is meant to help those experiencing an opioid overdose.

As for now, Staudt is “cautiously optimistic” about getting the bill passed. Currently, a senator has submitted the policy brief to the office that drafts legislation, so now they just have to wait for the draft to be completed.

“I’m here really because I want to make Iowa State a better place,” Staudt said. “We’re already a great place, but we have to keep working because if we stop trying to make Iowa State a better place, then we won’t be great anymore.”

Staudt, senior in political science, said he has had a great time seeing up close how the system works. This process has instilled confidence in him that he is in the right field of study.

Zuckerman, who also is in political science, was moved by the amount of impact that an everyday member of society can have on their government.

“Encourage anyone with an idea to pursue it,” Zuckerman said. “The citizen should be an active member in democracy.”

Heading into the last semester, Staudt appears to be finishing up the main objectives that he and West wanted to complete while in office.

Staudt does not know if the bill will be passed while he is still in office, but at least the idea is in motion.

“This is one of the last big campaign promises that I made to the students, and I really want to make sure we follow through with that,” Staudt said.

Throughout his years in Student Government, Staudt has found enjoyment in the change that he has been able to make and the impact that he has had on his fellow students.

Little did he know that one day he would be able to do this type of work on a state level, possibly making change that would not only affect Iowa State Students but also people all over the state of Iowa.

“Sometimes we think about our small little bubble,” Staudt said. “One thing that I try to with all of the things we’re working on is take a step back and take the 30,000-foot view.

“That’s kinda how I see my role is while I do sometimes get drawn into the weeds, I like to try to stay back above it and try to think of the bigger picture.”

About a year earlier, during Staudt and West’s campaign, they wanted to focus on policies that would impact all of Iowa State rather than a small portion.

If the bill passes, the Student Government leaders will have exceeded their goal.