A new nasal spray version of the drug Narcan will soon be on the shelves of drugstores across 35 states. You don’t need a prescription for it either. Narcan, which has been around since the 1970s, will be sold as an over-the-counter medicine.
Adapt Pharma is the pharmaceutical company producing this version. According to the company, it came up with this idea because Adapt Pharma believes it is much easier to administer than traditional Narcan. Originally, the only way to save someone’s life from an opiate overdose, such as heroin, was by injecting them with the drug. Recently, thousands of law enforcement agencies and first responders have been carrying the drug with them. It has saved thousands of lives.
Last year 10,574 overdose deaths were reported across the country. This number is probably even higher than estimated. With this drug now being readily available it will undoubtedly save a lot of people from death.
The life-saving miracle this drug produces is nothing short of amazing. It literally gives someone dying from an overdose of opiates a second chance at life. The problem is that people who suffer from the disease of addiction aren’t treating this as an opportunity to change, but as a way to stay high and not die.
The media and the politicians are compounding this issue. Many are expounding on the benefits of medications, such as Narcan, Suboxone, Vivitrol, and Methadone. While these medications are very useful in conjunction with real drug and alcohol treatment, alone they simply set people up to fail and potentially die from addiction.
Imagine for a moment that you broke your leg. Upon arrival at the hospital, the doctor explains that instead of setting the break so that it can heal properly, they are only going to give you crutches instead. That’s the equivalent of treating addiction solely with medication. Like crutches, the meds will allow you to get around and basically function but do not address and correct the real problem.
The epidemic of opiate addiction is not a problem that we can prescribe our way out of. Treatment that teaches people how to live life a happy and joyful life without the need to rely on medication is the real answer.
