Read more about the article Critics Say California Resistant to Strengthened Overdose Reversal Drugs

Critics Say California Resistant to Strengthened Overdose Reversal Drugs

Fentanyl, a drug that is up to 100 times stronger than morphine, has become a common adulterant in street drugs. Officials say this is the reason so many fentanyl encounters result in death; most people don’t mean to take it. When an opioid-naïve user ends up ingesting fentanyl, sometimes the drugs are so potent that normal-strength Naloxone, an opioid reversal drug, has little effect. EMTs have anecdotes of using multiple cans of fentanyl to attempt to bring fentanyl overdoses back to life. However, stronger and more effective opioid-reversal drugs are available.

Fentanyl Overdoses Are Becoming More Common

Fentanyl is now found in cocaine, heroin, speed, and counterfeit pills such as Xanax or Oxycontin. And they’re easier to get than ever. Law enforcement finds drug dealers on Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Signal. When one forum becomes risky to use for …

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In 48 States, Walgreens Sells Narcan Over the Counter

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  • Post category:opiateopioid
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Walgreens will soon sell lifesaving antidote, over-the-counter Narcan, that counteracts the deadly effects of opioid overdoses including heroin, they announced last week.

Narcan over the counter will allow both family members and drug users to have the antidote safely nearby in case of an overdose.

Opioid-related overdoses currently kill more than 140 Americans every day, and they have only been getting deadlier as powerful drugs such as fentanyl and carfentanil (an elephant tranquilizer), deadly to even some of the most experienced drug users, have hit the streets in the US. Narcan, which comes both as an injection and a nasal spray, can “pull back” drug users from the brink of death. Only the nose spray, however, has been made available for over-the-counter Narcan purchases.

While many states have their own laws regarding naloxone, Walgreens has taken months to hammer …

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