The St. Joseph County Health Department are applauding a recent FDA decision to approve over-the-counter Narcan.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report new overdose deaths involving opioids have gone up in the last three years. Drug overdoses are the leading cause of accidental deaths, though first responders have been fighting back with naloxone, typically in the form of the drug Narcan.
The FDA recently approved selling that opioid treatment over the counter without a prescription. Pharmacies will have it on shelves this summer, but community centers and health departments often hand it out for free.
St. Joseph County health officials are calling the new availability “a big win.”
So we are handing out free Narcan to save the lives of junkies, but innocent people with diabetes have to pay for insulin…
Narcan should be OTC, but we really need to re-evaluate our financial priorities.
This move to make the drug over the counter will lead to MORE deaths because people who are inclined to take drugs will participate in more risky behavior. Stupid move. They will think it is a get our of jail free card.
Narcan, is like playing Russian roulette with life. County Health officials should educate people to stop using dangerous drugs, that will eventually kill them. A better secured United States Southern border would definitely help first.