Naloxone: The Legalization of A Harm Reduction Drug
The overdose reversal drug was patented in the early ’60s but only became legal and accessible in the US in the last decade
Approximately 14,527 individuals in New York City unintentionally overdosed and died from 2000 to 2017. About half of those deaths took place from 2010–2017 and 80 percent involved an opioid.
Source: New York City Department of Mental Health and Hygiene
One way New York City has addressed the opioid epidemic, is through harm reduction approaches. Harm reduction aims to specifically reflect the needs of individuals and communities struggling with a certain health crisis, according to the Harm Reduction Coalition. It also “focuses on positive change and on working with people without judgment, coercion, discrimination, or requiring that they stop using drugs as a precondition of support” according to Harm Reduction International.
A somewhat recently legalized harm reduction resource is Naloxone, a drug that can reverse an opioid related overdose. But, Naloxone isn’t a new resource for this opioid use disorder community. In fact, it was introduced to the public nearly 50 years ago, and only recently became legalized across the United States in the last two decades. It was patented until 1985, at which point generic versions were developed. New Mexico was the first state to legalize access to naloxone in 2001, and today, 41 states have legalized the selling of the overdose reversal drug.
According to a 2016 New England Journal of Medicine article, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the drug in 1971 as an injection, but it has since evolved to be administered as a nasal spray, which is known as Narcan. The nasal spray allows a person who is not a medically trained to administer the dose, although it does require a brief, one-time training. New York City legalized access to naloxone in 2006.
Frequent Narcan-specific trainings are available across the nation, which provide a demonstration of how to administer the drug, as well as a kit including two doses of Narcan. New York City has several trainings available for the foreseeable future, and diligently updates the schedule for the public on a regular basis.
According to the New York State Opioid Poisoning, Overdose, & Prevention 2015 Annual Report, from April 2012 to December 2013, Narcan administrations by EMS alone saved 223 lives in New York state. The report also states that by the end of 2015, 48,473 first responders across the state were trained to administer naloxone. This data supports the findings of the most recent New York State 2018 Opioid Annual Data Report, which found that Narcan was administered 15,616 times by Emergency Medical Services (EMS) across New York, a 50 percent jump from 2015. The report states that across all agencies, which also includes law enforcement, and Community Opioid Overdose Prevention (COOP), the number of Narcan administrations has risen, given the increase in opioid overdoses in recent years, and improved access to the overdose reversal drug.
Source: New York State Opioid Annual Data Report 2018, DEA 2018 National Drug Threat Assessment
Because naloxone has been legalized and widely distributed within the last two decades, opioid related overdoses are being reversed, and lives are being saved every single day in New York and across the United States. According to CVS, 26,000 overdoses were reversed with the use of naloxone from 1996 to 2014. Given the most recent data, it is likely that the number of lives saved has increased significantly since 2014.
Harm reduction is aiding this community, Narcan is saving lives within it.
