Drug overdoses involving opioids, such as heroin, have increased by nearly 400 percent since 1999. Four in five heroin users started out by misusing prescription opioid pain medications, and while the rate of overdoses involving prescription pain medication is leveling off, heroin-related overdoses nearly doubled between 2011 and 2013. Opioid overdoses have turned into an epidemic that cuts across class, race, and demographic lines, and requires collaborative responses and treatment initiatives.
In October 2015, in response to this crisis, President Barack Obama announced federal, state, local, and private sector efforts to address prescription drug abuse and the country’s heroin epidemic. President Obama’s announcement also highlighted ongoing efforts, including the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Law Enforcement Naloxone Toolkit, which supports law enforcement agencies in establishing naloxone programs.
Naloxone, also known as Narcan, is a fast-acting prescription medicine that works to reverse overdoses caused by opioids. An opioid overdose typically takes 45-90 minutes to turn fatal, meaning that there is a critical window for lifesaving intervention. Naloxone helps restore breathing within two to five minutes and can stabilize an overdose victim until proper medical care can be delivered. Since law enforcement officers are often the first to arrive at an overdose scene, their actions can mean the difference between life and death.
Recognizing the important role of first responders, the Law Enforcement Naloxone Toolkit is a one-stop clearinghouse designed to answer frequently asked questions about naloxone and provide resources, including standard operating procedures, training guides, community strategic plans, outreach materials, and memoranda of agreement, to support law enforcement. All of the resources can be easily downloaded by law enforcement agencies and customized for their use. For a list of law enforcement agencies that have implemented naloxone programs, please visit the North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition website by clicking here.
To explore the Law Enforcement Naloxone Toolkit, please visit www.bja.gov/naloxone.