naloxone

The Florida Department of Health has issued thousands of free Narcan kits but is still trying to make more available to the public.

It’s a move that some advocates have long sought as a way to improve access to a life-saving drug, though the exact impact will not be clear immediately. Here’s a look at the issues involved.

Advisers to the FDA put the opioid overdose-reversal drug a step closer to being sold without a needing a prescription. Even if approved, the medication may not reach many people who need it.

The nasal spray version of naloxone is already available without a prescription in all states. But switching it to over-the-counter status would allow it to be sold in vending machines, supermarkets and other locations.

Emergent BioSolutions has applied to the FDA to sell the opioid overdose-reversal drug over the counter. Addiction experts say it may be a key step to lower fentanyl deaths.

The Tallahassee-area drug treatment program received 800 doses of Kloxxado, an 8-milligram internasal naloxone that is similar to Narcan but double the dose.

Three health facilities have been fighting the opioid crisis for several years and are the only providers of naloxone in the county.

Attorney General Ashley Moody announced that as part of the settlement, Walmart has agreed to dispense 672,000 naloxone kits to first responders.

The plan is for health departments in all 67 counties to have kits with two Narcan nasal sprays that can be administered without a health care provider.

Community activists blitzed beaches and warned spring breakers of a surge in recreational drugs cut with the dangerous synthetic opioid.