Narcan

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved selling naloxone over the counter.

The drug would be the first opioid treatment drug to be sold without a prescription.

In New York State, residents can already obtain Narcan from a pharmacy without a prescription thanks to a standing prescription order from the State Department of Health.

The drug can reverse overdoses of opioids, including street drugs such as heroin and fentanyl and prescription versions including oxycodone.

The FDA sees making naloxone available more widely as a key strategy to control the nationwide overdose crisis, which has been linked to more than 100,000 U.S. deaths a year

Emergent BioSolutions, the company that makes Narcan, said they expect the drug will become available over-the-counter by late summer. Other brands of naloxone and injectable forms will not yet be available over the counter, but they could be soon.

Several manufacturers of generic naloxone that’s made similarly to Narcan will now be required to file applications to switch their drugs over the counter as part of a requirement by the FDA.

Narcan

The FDA is considering making naloxone available over the counter in the United States.

Naloxone is a life-saving medication that can reverse an overdose from opioids, including heroin, fentanyl, and prescription opioid medications,, when given in time.

The panel of Food and Drug Administration experts voted unanimously last week in favor of the switch after a full day of presentations and discussions centered on whether untrained users would be able to safely and effectively use the nasal spray in emergency situations.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, over 106,000 people died of opioid-related overdoses in 2021.

Mental Health Association in Chautauqua County Executive Director Steven Cobb is enthused about the news and said it will help remove stigma, “When you make something over the counter, I think it shows to a broader bunch of people that it’s safe to use and that people can handle using it. And it also makes Naloxone, or Narcan, which is a brand name, just available to a larger segment of the population.”

Cobb said people in New York can already obtain Narcan from a pharmacy without a prescription thanks to a standing prescription order from the State Department of Health, “New York State will cover the co-pay for your insurance, whether it’s private pay insurance or whether it’s Medicaid or Medicare. The pharmacist will put it through on your prescription and then New York State will cover the co-pay for three boxes of Narcan per year per New York State resident.”

Cobb said if the FDA approval goes through, he’d like to see Narcan made available through vending machines anywhere people who use substances gather, including health facilities, libraries, bars, and more.

He stressed that Narcan is not a drug that can be abused, “Unless you have opiates in your system, Narcan will have no effect on you. And there’s no ability to get high. You can’t be poisoned by Narcan. It’s a very safe drug to use for the community, to feel comfortable using, safety-wise there are no issues.”

A vote on the matter by the FDA is expected by the end of March.

For more information about Naloxone and training on how to use it, contact the MHA at 716-661-9044 or visit mhachautauqua.org

Heroin overdoses

New York State Police said from January 27 to February 7, 2023, there were 94 overdoses reported including six deaths. In Chautauqua, Cattaraugus and Allegany Counties there were 20 overdoses and 3 deaths.

Police said Naloxone, also known as Narcan, was administered 57 times during this time frame. They caution that the more lethal strand of heroin being distributed may cause death.

If you or a family member, friend or acquaintance struggle with opiate use, help can be found through CombatAddictionCHQ.com, the State Office of Addiction Services and Supports at www.oasas.ny.gov, or through the HOPEline at 1-877-846-7369.

The Chautauqua County Department of Health and Human Services (CCDHHS), Brooks-TLC Hospital System, Inc., UPMC Chautauqua and Allegheny Health Network Westfield were part of a greater Chautauqua County Community Health Planning Team that completed the plan.

The Community Health Assessment is done in conjunction with the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) Prevention Agenda.

The assessment researched data trends in Chautauqua County, compared data trends across New York State, and provided a plan for the upcoming years to improve public health concerns.

The top four family and/or community health issues identified as concerns in Chautauqua County’s Health Survey were:

– Medical health (heart disease – high blood pressure, stroke, heart attack; diabetes; obesity; cancer; asthma; chronic lung disease; chronic pain management; etc. (75.55%),
– Mental health (stress; anxiety; depression; suicide; etc.) (66.52%),
– Environmental safety (food/water, neighborhood; roadway; safe and clean housing; etc. (56.75%),
– And drug/alcohol use disorders (49.45%).

The top four suggestions that might help communities make healthy choices and changes identified in the Community Health Survey were:

– Having groups in the community that encourage healthy habits (physical activity, nutrition, stress reduction, diabetes prevention, fall prevention, quitting tobacco/nicotine, etc. (53.48%),
– Having safe areas to play and exercise in the community (51.86%),
– Having more healthy food choices at local convenience stores (48.79%),
– And getting information about how to make healthy changes from social media, internet, newspapers and TV (44.05%).

All hospitals and the County Health and Human Services Department have agreed to collaborate to address the Prevent Chronic Diseases priority area with a focus on Tobacco Prevention. They also plan to work to decrease the prevalence of tobacco use by adolescents.

The plan states they also will work collaboratively with the Chautauqua County Department of Mental Hygiene in the area of Mental and Substance Use Disorders to prevent opioid deaths by increasing the availability and accessibility of Narcan.

Additionally, the County Health Department’s Environmental division will work to Promote a Healthy and Safe Environment by increasing the number of homes tested for radon and increasing educational efforts to increase blood lead testing rates.

And under the priority of “Promoting Healthy Women, Infants and Children” the group will focus on addressing the areas of perinatal and infant health (by increasing breastfeeding) and maternal and women’s health by enhancing collaboration with other programs, providers, agencies, and community members to address key social determinants of health that impact the health of women, infants, children, and families across the life course

More information about the New York State Prevention Agenda can be found at https://www.health.ny.gov/prevention/prevention_agenda/2019-2024/.

You can find the full 2022-2024 Community Health Assessment and Community Health Improvement Plan on Chautauqua County’s website: https://chqgov.com/health-and-human-services/Annual-Reports.

Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation requiring the supply of opioid antagonists. Opioid antagonists, such as Naloxone, can reverse the fatal effects of an opioid overdose.

In addition to ensuring all State University of New York and City University of New York owned or operated housing facilities stock this vital medicine, resident assistants and other designated employees of the colleges will be trained to administer these antagonists in the case of overdose emergencies.

This bill comes in response to the ongoing opioid epidemic crisis. Opioid overdoses have surpassed gun-related murders and car accidents as the leading cause of death for Americans under 50 years old, with as many as 64,000 people last year estimated to have lost their lives. New York State is no exception to this crisis, experiencing over 2,939 fatal overdoses in 2019.