A new law in California will require bars and clubs to offer drug-testing devices to protect patrons from drinks spiked with "date rape drugs."
The law, Assembly Bill 1013, took effect Monday.
It will require 2,400 establishments with Type 48 licenses from the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, which authorizes the sale of beer, wine and distilled spirits, to offer the testing devices free or at a price “not to exceed a reasonable amount based on the wholesale cost,” the department said in a release.
It will also require the venues to have signs with the message: “Don’t get roofied! Drink spiking drug test kits available here. Ask a staff member for details.”
The watering holes and clubs will be responsible for providing the kits in the form of test strips, stickers, straws or other devices that “can detect the presence of controlled substances in drinks,” such as flunitrazepam, ketamine and gamma hydroxybutyric acid.
All are considered "date rape drugs" that predators might place in a person's drink, and their effects are compounded with alcohol, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
Rohypnol, the trade name for flunitrazepam, produces "sedative-hypnotic, anti-anxiety and muscle relaxant effects," according to the DEA. It hasn’t been approved for medical use in the U.S. by the Food and Drug Administration; outside the country it’s prescribed to treat insomnia. It can be dissolved in liquid, and it is misused “to physically and psychologically incapacitate victims targeted for sexual assault,” the DEA said.
Ketamine, a general anesthetic that “causes individuals to feel detached from their bodies and surroundings,” is used as a date rape drug to render victims unable to move or fight back, according to a DEA report. It can also cause amnesia so victims don’t remember the events that occurred.
Gamma hydroxybutyric acid, or GHB, is another name for the generic drug sodium oxybate. While it exists under the trade name Xyrem and is approved by the FDA as a prescription medication to improve daytime sleepiness, it has been misused for euphoric and calming effects, the DEA said.
Misuse of GHB became popular among young people at dance clubs and raves in the 1990s and also “gained notoriety as a date rape drug,” according to the DEA. Use of GHB can lead to drowsiness, confusion and memory impairment, and it can produce visual hallucinations and excited and aggressive behavior. GHB overdoses can result in unconsciousness, seizures, slowed heart rate, coma and death.
Failing to comply with the new law could lead license holders to face “administrative actions impacting their licenses,” the Alcoholic Beverage Control Department said.