Louisville families, addiction recovery groups applauding FDA's approval for over-the-counter Narcan

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Local families and addiction recovery groups are applauding the decision to allow an overdose-reversing drug to be sold over the counter.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved selling the leading version of naloxone without a prescription, setting the overdose-reversing drug on course to become the first opioid treatment drug to be sold over the counter.

The approved nasal spray from Gaithersburg, Maryland-based Emergent BioSolutions is the best-known form of naloxone.

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

“Simply put, Narcan saves lives," said Ben Goldman, with Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness. "We applaud the FDA for expanding access to this live-saving harm reduction tool. While the FDA hasn’t said when it will be available or how much it will cost, the Department of Public Health and Wellness remains committed to providing it to anyone in our community who needs it."

Anyone can pick up Narcan anonymously at one of Louisville's 11 Harm Reduction outreach locations.

Making naloxone available more widely is seen as a key strategy to control the nationwide overdose crisis, which has been linked to more than 100,000 U.S. deaths a year. The majority of those deaths are tied to opioids, primarily potent synthetic versions such as fentanyl that can take multiple doses of naloxone to reverse.

Numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show 1,943 overdose deaths were reported by September 2020 in Kentucky. That number jumped to 2,391 in 2021, and decreased slightly in 2022 with 2,254 reported, a 14% increase from 2020.

In Jefferson County, overdose deaths have been on the rise since 2015, according to the Jefferson County Coroner's Office. The county did, however, see a slight decrease in 2022 from 2021, with 583 compared to 620 in 2021. In 2020, it saw 604, nearly double the 379 reported in 2019, and 323 reported in 2018. Those numbers from Deputy Coroner Scott Russ were the most up to date on March 29, 2023.

Indiana saw a similar jump between 2020 and 2021. By September 2020, the Hoosier state reported 2,160 overdose deaths, with 2,663 over the same period of time in 2021, and 2,698 in 2022.

"They're afraid people will judge them as bad parents or bad family members, or they didn't do something right. It's got nothing to do with that," said Lynne Huckleberry, whose son could have been a statistic as he fought an opioid addiction.

"What I ultimately found out, just that there was not a lot I could do to help," she said. "I could be supportive, I could love him, I could care about him, but I had to do it from a distance. Ultimately, it was his decision to get help."

Huckleberry's son has now been in recovery for nine years.

"I'm so grateful for that, because a lot of my friends have lost their children," she said.

Huckleberry, who hosts in-person Narcan training sessions for the public, said she hopes more places with public restrooms, like restaurants, buy Narcan to keep on hand because an overdose can happen anywhere.

"It's great news," said Missy Phelps with Seven Counties Services. "I know a lot of of families who don't necessarily know where to purchase or obtain Narcan, and so their loved ones are suffering and struggling from a disease of addiction. So they'll have access to possibly save their life."

Narcan will become available over-the-counter by late summer, the company said. With that, Huckleberry also said she hopes more in-person Narcan training can happen, as not everyone has access to YouTube, even though the drug comes with directions.

"These are the directions right here. Those are the directions, and that's all fine and dandy, and people can read that, but sometimes it's better for people when they have someone come and show them how to do it," she said.

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.

It's unclear how many stores will carry Narcan or how much it will cost, something Huckleberry said concerns her.

It's also not yet clear whether insurers will continue to cover it as a prescription drug if it’s available over the counter.

"Don't forget that these 'junkies,' put it in quotes, are someone's children, parents, spouses, friends, and they deserve, you know, just as much respect as anybody else," said Huckleberry.

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