ILLINOIS (WCIA) — A new state law in Illinois will require that coroners notify law enforcement and the Department of Public Health when they find suspiciously high levels of fentanyl during an autopsy.

House Bill 4942 requires that the Illinois Department of Public Health adopt rules that specific information needs to be included in a coroner or medical examiner’s report.

For example, if fentanyl was part, or all, of the consumed substance, when the cause of death is determined to be a drug overdose, this information would need to be included in the coroner’s report.

Other important information that must be reported includes, what other substances were consumed, in what proportion was fentanyl consumed to other substances, and if there was a suspicious level of fentanyl in combination with other controlled substances.

This information must be given to all law enforcement agencies that have jurisdiction in the case in a “prompt manner,” according to Illinois law.

This law took effect Jan. 1, 2025. For a full list of laws beginning in the new year, click here.