The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources launched a statewide naloxone distribution project designed to curb high rates of opioid overdose deaths in the state.
The program is predominately funded through a $1.07 million grant from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Funds from the grant will allow the state to distribute more than 8,000, two-dose naloxone rescue kits to current and future drug treatment programs.
The initiative is a collaborative effort between state's Bureau for Behavioral Health and Health Facilities and the Bureau for Public Health.
"Naloxone is a lifesaving antidote that, if administered in a timely manner, can effectively reverse respiratory depression caused by opioid and opiate overdose and revive victims," said Rahul Gupta, MD, state health officer and commissioner of West Virginia's Bureau for Public Health. "This collaboration represents an essential step toward turning around West Virginia's staggering overdose statistics."
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