Opioid Overdose Antidote Drug, Narcan, Hits Retail Store Shelves Next Week

A drug used to reverse opioid overdose will be available over the counter in retail stores as soon as next week, according to its manufacturer. Naloxone (brand name Narcan) will have a suggested retail price of $44.99 per carton of 2 doses.

The US Food and Drug Administration approved Narcan as an over-the-counter therapy in March, amid record-high deaths from opioid overdose driven in large part by synthetic drugs like  Narcan is a nasal spray version of naloxone that can revive a person who has overdosed in a matter of minutes.

Most states in the United States have standing orders allowing pharmacists or other qualified organizations to provide Narcan to people at risk of an overdose or who are helping someone at risk. This landmark approval allows the drug to be sold without a prescription.

“We think really everyone should be thinking about putting this into their first aid kit,” Dr. Kevin Ban, chief medical officer of Walgreens, said in an interview with CNN. “It’s really unlimited in terms of the folks who should make sure that they get some naloxone in the off chance that they come across someone who was experiencing an overdose. This is a way to reverse that overdose. It’ll save people’s lives.”