Overdose reversal drug naloxone should be made available without a prescription, say U.S. Reps. Buddy Carter (R-GA) and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA).
The members recently sent a letter to Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Robert Califf calling on the FDA to make naloxone available over-the-counter.
“Increasing access to naloxone is a critical component in addressing the fentanyl crisis,” tweeted Rep. Miller-Meeks on Feb. 10. “I was proud to join @RepBuddyCarter in a letter to the FDA to make naloxone available without a prescription, which has the potential to save countless lives.”
Naloxone “is a proven, effective tool to reduce medical emergencies, drug overdoses, and deaths” by up to 46 percent, according to the lawmakers, who both serve on the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee and are members of the GOP Doctors Caucus.
“Increasing access to naloxone is a critical component in addressing the fentanyl crisis that is devastating communities and families across this country,” wrote the members. “Since President Biden took office, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has seized enough fentanyl to kill over 21.3 times the U.S. population. This is a crisis that is impacting every single one of us and the communities we call home.
“There is no moral, medical, or safety-related reason for these life-saving overdose reversal agents to remain locked under prescription regulations,” Rep. Carter and Rep. Miller-Meeks wrote.