CVS To Offer Non-Prescription Naloxone In Florida

WFSU | By Jim Ash

Published May 26, 2016 at 3:44 PM EDT

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Email

Your browser doesn’t support HTML5 audio

Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

Pharmacy giant CVS says it will soon make the overdose-reversing drug Naloxone available at its Florida stores without a prescription.

CVS says it will make Naloxone, the generic form of Narcan, available without prescription in its more than 878 stores in Florida at the beginning of July. The drug rapidly reverses heroin and other opiate-based drug overdoses.

Commonly known as “Narcan,” the drug quickly reverses the sedating effects of opiates that dangerously slow heart rate and breathing. Naloxone is the primary tool for emergency room doctors and first responders.

Addiction specialists urged lawmakers earlier this year to make Naloxone available to the general public. Governor Rick Scott signed the legislation in March.

Now, CVS says it will begin selling the drug at its 878 stores in Florida in early July. A company spokeswoman says customers can expect to pay $90 for a two-dose kit that can be carried or stored for emergencies.