Rising Heroin and Opioid-Related Deaths in New York May Mean More Naloxone

Reports in recent weeks have documented the widespread heroin and opioid use in the New England area with numerous governors acknowledging the problem. Today, the New York Attorney General weighed in on the matter for his own state.

Just recently, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick addressed his state about the overwhelming drug issue that has struck the region. In response to the rising addictions and deaths, he asked the state's public health commissioner to have more first-responders carry the drug naloxone, which reverses heroin overdoses. He also asked the state government to work to allocate money in order to fight drug overdoses by cracking down on police measures and helping those with addiction/misuse problems.

New York Attorney General Eric. T. Schneiderman echoed Governor Patrick's suggestion and made an announcement today about a program that allowed law enforcement officers throughout the state to carry naloxone. The program is expected to cost $5 million and each state and local law enforcer would be given a kit that contains naloxone to combat heroin overdoses. With an 84% increase in heroin overdoses in New York City between 2010 and 2012, this measure needs to be taken.

Naloxone has been available for decades, but has been limited to emergency room use. Dr. Scott Coyne applauds the drug's effectiveness. The chief surgeon and medical director for the Suffolk County Police Department told the New York Times that police officers have avoided 184 overdoses by administering the drug. After the department oversaw a successful pilot program for naloxone in 2012, it quickly became a crucial part of their force.

If naloxone becomes more widely available while the state Health Department continues to closely track opioid prescriptions and cracks down on heroin use, this issue may be solved sooner than expected. Politicians and public figures played off each other's actions and are approaching this problem the right way.

To read more about opioid and heroin use in the United States, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.