Health

Narcan, opioid OD antidote, now available over-the-counter

MIAMI VALLEY — Naloxone, the life-saving antidote to opioid overdose, is now available over the counter at stores and pharmacies around the country.

>>PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Narcan, opioid OD antidote, will be available over-the-counter next week

The drug is available online and in drugstores including Walgreens, Rite Aid, Walmart, and CVS with a retail cost of $44.99 for a two-dose carton, CNN reports.

No prescription will be required.

Narcan can reverse an opioid overdose in minutes.

Health experts think everyone should keep Narcan in their homes due to the opioid epidemic.

“We are at a point in the crisis where each week the equivalent to a high school classroom of teenagers dies from overdoses,” said Dr. Scott Hadlan, Chief of Adolescent Young Adult Medicine at Mass General Hospital for Children. “Most of those overdoses are actually happening in people’s homes. There is a potential for the parent or other loved one to be able to respond.”

Doctors believe this will help fight the epidemic.

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