A new program will seek to reduce overdose deaths in Arkansas by getting the overdose reversal drug naloxone into the homes of at-risk Arkansans.
The program, NaloxHome, will provide free naloxone — commonly known by the brand name Narcan — to participating Arkansas hospitals to dispense at discharge from the emergency room to patients or caregivers of patients who have experienced an overdose or are at risk for an overdose. The Arkansas Center for Health Improvement is partnering with the state drug director and the Arkansas Department of Human Services to administer the program.
Unity Health in Searcy is the first hospital in the state to launch the program.
“We know that naloxone saves lives,” said Arkansas Drug Director Kirk Lane. “Our goal is to get the drug into the homes of as many at-risk individuals as possible so fewer of our fellow Arkansans are lost to this epidemic.”
Overdose deaths in the U.S. increased by nearly 30% in 2020, with more than 92,000 lives lost ― an unprecedented and catastrophic jump from about 71,000 deaths in 2019, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preliminary data from the CDC indicate that overdose deaths reached a new record high of more than 107,000 in 2021, an increase of nearly 15%.
Funding for the program is provided by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration through Arkansas DHS. More information is available on ACHI’s website at ACHI.net/NaloxHome.
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NaloxHome program launched in Arkansas
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A new program will seek to reduce overdose deaths in Arkansas by getting the overdose reversal drug naloxone into the homes of at-risk Arkansans.
The program, NaloxHome, will provide free naloxone — commonly known by the brand name Narcan — to participating Arkansas hospitals to dispense at discharge from the emergency room to patients or caregivers of patients who have experienced an overdose or are at risk for an overdose. The Arkansas Center for Health Improvement is partnering with the state drug director and the Arkansas Department of Human Services to administer the program.
Unity Health in Searcy is the first hospital in the state to launch the program.
“We know that naloxone saves lives,” said Arkansas Drug Director Kirk Lane. “Our goal is to get the drug into the homes of as many at-risk individuals as possible so fewer of our fellow Arkansans are lost to this epidemic.”
Overdose deaths in the U.S. increased by nearly 30% in 2020, with more than 92,000 lives lost ― an unprecedented and catastrophic jump from about 71,000 deaths in 2019, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preliminary data from the CDC indicate that overdose deaths reached a new record high of more than 107,000 in 2021, an increase of nearly 15%.
Funding for the program is provided by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration through Arkansas DHS. More information is available on ACHI’s website at ACHI.net/NaloxHome.
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