Local health district responds to over the counter Narcan
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved over the counter sales of the leading opioid antidote, Narcan.
Narcan is the best known form of Naloxone from the Maryland-based manufacturer Emergent BioSolutions.
According to Mallory Johnson of Eastern Idaho Public Health, Narcan is "used to temporally reverse opioid overdoses."
"Intranasal naloxone works through the mucous membrane," Johnson said. "It attaches to the opioid receptors in their brain. It actually has a stronger connection to the opiate receptors in the brain than opioids do, and it temporarily pushes them off. Naloxone is effective for about 30 to 60 minutes."
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, more than 100,000 people died of drug related overdoses in 2021 alone.
The approval by the FDA makes Narcan available in convenience stores, supermarkets and online stores.
Police and first responders already carry Narcan rescue kits, but Johnson says the drug can save lives when first responders can't make it in time.
Johnson tells us over 2,500 narcan kits were distributed throughout the state in 2022.
"Of those 2,500 naloxone that were distributed last year, over 1200 reversals were reported in 2022. So that means that over 1200 lives were saved by naloxone in 2022," Johnson said.
While manufactures haven't released the price of over the counter narcan, organizations like the Idaho Harm Reduction Project or make it available to the public for free.
Although the drug is already available through these organizations, experts say providing it over the counter will give more people access to the life saving drug without the stigma attached to it.
"Studies actually show us that one out of four people who use a prescription opioid actually struggle with opioid addiction or dependence," Johnson said. "And so Naloxone is there to help. We want to reduce fatalities. We want to make sure that people are alive. So then if they choose to, they can go and seek treatment and seek recovery."
According to the FDA, the drug will be available over the counter in late summer 2023. For access to Narcan rescue kits, call the Idaho Harm Reduction Project at 208-991-4574.
