This is the first time naloxone has been made available without a prescription.
The medication will be sold in stores by late summer, the drugs manufacturersaid.
Naloxone its really easy to give.
Illustration by Mira Norian for Verywell Health
The National Institute on Drug Abuse recorded more than 106,000 overdose deaths in 2021.
The majority of those involved fentanyl.
How Can You Tell If Someone Is Overdosing?
Illustration by Mira Norian for Verywell Health
You may also notice discoloration of the persons skin, depending on their race.
When in doubt, it may make sense to administer Narcan.
Baillieu said Narcan is a really safe medication, even when given to someone who hasnt overdosed on opioids.
Illustration by Mira Norian for Verywell Health
Should You Call 911 Before Administering Narcan?
If you have Narcan available, use the spray first.
Then you could call 911.
Illustration by Mira Norian for Verywell Health
Narcan wont permanently reverse an overdose.
How Should You Use Narcan?
Step 1
Peel off the back of the Narcan package and remove the equipment.
Illustration by Mira Norian for Verywell Health
Hold the machine in one hand.
Step 2
Lay the person on their back, face up.
verify their head is straight.
Support their head with your hand.
Hold the unit steady, firmly press the plunger with your thumb.
This will release a spray of the medication into the persons nose.
Step 4
Wait two to three minutes for the medicine to work.
If you havent yet called 911, this is a good time to do so.
Put the person in a recovery position.
Until the person is breathing normally or EMS arrives, you’re free to give them rescue breaths.
Lay them on their back, tilt their chin up, and pinch their nose.
Place your mouth on theirs to make a seal and give them two slow breaths.
Repeat this every five seconds.
You may need to repeat this every two to three minutes until breathing returns to normal.
Stay near the person and closely watch them until medical help arrives.
Dispose the Narcan gadget in an area away from children.
What Should You Do After Giving Narcan?
Narcancan reversean overdose for 30 to 90 minutes, but opioids can stay in the body longer than that.
During this time, the patient should not use additional drugs.
They may become agitated and need some time to get coordinated again.
People who are opioid dependent can experience symptoms of withdrawal within minutes of receiving Narcan.
These may include:
We want to be able to calmly explain to the person that they overdosed.
Give them positive affirmations like Thank God youre alive, Martinez said.
Theyre going through that hunger, where they want to use… and were telling them that they cant.
They have woken up probably surrounded by a bunch of people, so it creates certain emotions.
How Does Narcan Work?
Opioids act on a receptor in the brain that controls breathing.
In the case of an overdose, a persons breathing may slow to the point where they become unconscious.
Should You Get Narcan Before Its Available OTC?
In most cases, a prescription is required for someone to access Narcan.
In many states,providers will mailit to your home.
In others, it’s possible for you to pick it up at vending machines.
A simple Google search can tell you how to access Narcan in your state.
The drug manufacturer will set the price for over-the-counter Narcan.
The medication is currently free or inexpensive to people covered by Medicare or private insurance.
But insurers may not cover it when sold over the counter.
Martinez said that many people still stigmatize drug users.
Making naloxone widely available could encourage more people to see the benefits of harm-reduction tools.
This decision to make naloxone over the counter is really important so that people can access it easily.
It helps with broader issues around communities involvement in looking after individuals who misuse substances, too.
Baillieu said there have been instances of marijuana being laced with these drugs.
Baillieu applauded the move to make naloxone more accessible to everyone.
Still, the overdose crisis is multi-faceted and addressing it will require interventions from many angles, he said.
Naloxone is one part of the puzzle.
Decreasing opioid overdose is more than just treating overdose.
Its looking at the social determinants of health that lead to substance misuse.
Its looking at access to treatment.
Its looking at addiction counseling.
Its looking at all of those things that can help an individual and communities.
National Institute on Drug Abuse.Drug overdose death rates.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.SAMHSA opioid overdose prevention toolkit: safety advice for patients & family members.
National Library of Medicine: DailyMed.Narcannaloxone hydrochloride spray[drug label].
