Adapt Pharma will donate 20,000 cartons — 40,000 doses — of the company's naloxone nasal spray Narcan to 4,726 universities across the nation to help curb the rates of opioid overdose deaths.
The donation is the result of an ongoing collaboration with the Clinton Foundation's Clinton Health Matters Initiative. CHMI aims to improve the health and well-being of people by galvanizing organizations, communities and individuals to make efforts to improve the health of others.
"Colleges and universities are no exception to the opioid and prescription drug epidemic that's been devastating communities throughout the nation," said Gillian Sealy, CEO of CMHI. "The Clinton Health Matters Initiative brings people together to tackle the most urgent health issues facing Americans today, and we believe that expanding our partnership with Adapt Pharma to help put an end to this epidemic is an important step."
Narcan is the only nasal spray approved by the Food and Drug Administration that deploys the opioid overdose antidote naloxone. Because the naloxone delivery system doesn't require the use of syringes or vials, the medication can be administered by individuals without medical training. The current collaboration builds upon a previous effort that donated 3,300 free doses of Narcan to high schools in 33 states.
"The success of the Free Narcan Nasal Spray for High Schools Program demonstrates the important role academic institutions can play in educating students about opioid misuse and keeping them safe in the face of the current opioid epidemic," said Seamus Mulligan, chairman and CEO of Adapt Pharma. "Expanding this program to U.S. colleges and universities will continue this education as well as expand access to this potentially life-saving tool."
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