Narcan Goes OTC in the US

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved over-the-counter (OTC) sales of Narcan (naloxone), a drug used to immediately treat an opioid overdose. The drug could previously be prescribed and sold at many pharmacies, but the OTC designation should expand the reach of the drug to more pharmacies and people who may use the drug on others.

According to Phil Taylor, “ne recent report examining the consequences of switching naloxone from prescription to OTC use could help expand access, given that retail pharmacies prescribed only around a third of a total of around 17 million naloxone doses in 2021. The report also showed that bystanders were present, but unable to provide life-saving measures such as naloxone in approximately 46% of fatal overdoses in the US in that year.”

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(Source: pharmaphorum, March 30^th, 2023)