Surgeon general urges public to carry opioid overdose reversal drug in rare advisory (The Hill)

Thursday Apr 5th, 2018

The surgeon general in a rare public health advisory is calling on more Americans to carry a potentially life-saving medication that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.

Jerome Adams said it is particularly important for friends and family of those at risk of an opioid overdose to have naloxone on hand as the nation’s opioid crisis shows no signs of slowing down.

Baltimore City Health Commissioner Leana Wen urged the federal government to make naloxone more affordable, suggesting it negotiate a discounted rate with manufacturers or provide funds for increased access to treatment.

“Unfortunately, [Baltimore is] having to ration naloxone because we simply don’t have the resources to purchase this life-saving antidote,” Wen said in a statement. “Every week, we count the doses we have left and make hard decisions about who will receive the medication and who will have to go without.”

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When I’ve asked experts about these approaches, it’s not that any of them are bad. It’s that they fall short. For instance, Leana Wen, the former health commissioner of Baltimore (and soon-to-be president of Planned Parenthood), said that the Support for Patients and Communities Act “is simply tinkering around the edges.”

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