Source: United States Senator for Minnesota Amy Klobuchar
Expanding Naloxone availability will help increase access, lower costs of medication, and save lives
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) joined a bicameral, bipartisan group of colleagues in urging seven major drug manufacturers to expand the availability of Naloxone, the opioid overdose reversal medication. Making Naloxone available over the counter is expected to increase access to this life-saving medication, lower the cost of medication, and help save lives. A peer-reviewed study found that substantially increased access to naloxone reduced opioid overdose mortality rates by 46 percent. The number of opioid deaths in Minnesota from April 2020 to April 2021 rose by 39 percent compared to the previous year.
Despite the effectiveness of naloxone in reversing active opioid overdoses and the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) public support for making the product available over-the-counter, the medication is not currently available over-the-counter because drug manufacturers have resisted applying.
“It has never been more important to adopt opioid overdose prevention and reversal strategies on a wide scale. This includes steps to increase access to affordable naloxone, which is a proven, effective tool to reduce medical emergencies, drug overdoses, and deaths,” the lawmakers wrote to the CEOs of Pfizer, Emergent Biosolutions, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Hikma, Akorn, Adamis Pharmaceuticals, and Amphastar Pharmaceuticals. “With the support of naloxone manufacturers, we can significantly increase access to the medication and help mitigate the worsening crisis of drug overdose deaths.”
“One of the most important actions that can be taken right now is for manufacturers to submit applications to make naloxone available over the counter without delay,” the lawmakers continued. “Creating additional OTC naloxone options will help to reduce prices for those who need it, as well as for first responders and other good Samaritans, and increase the supply in at-risk communities.”
Klobuchar has long led efforts to combat the opioid epidemic. In December 2020, she introduced bipartisan legislation with Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) to increase funding and expand access to treatment and prevention services. That same month, she also secured significant federal funding to help Minnesotans recovering from addiction access job training and support services.
In 2018, three of Klobuchar’s bipartisan bills to combat the opioid epidemic were signed into law as part of the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act.
Klobuchar’s bipartisan Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery (CARA) Act was enacted in July 2016. This law encourages states and local communities to pursue a full array of proven strategies in the fight against addiction, including Klobuchar’s provision to combat drug abuse by enhancing prescription drug monitoring programs.
The letters were also signed by Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Angus King (I-ME), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Susan Collins (R-ME), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ed Markey (D-MA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), and Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Representatives Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Mark Desaulnier (D-CA), Peter Meijer (R-MI), Katie Porter (D-CA), Mariannette J. Miller-Meeks, M.D. (R-IA), Jim Cooper (D-TN), Peter Welch (D-VT), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Cori Bush (D-MO), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Jimmy Gomez (D-CA).
The letters are supported by The American Medical Association, the American Society for Addiction Medicine, and the Remedy Alliance.
Full text of the letters can be found HERE or below:
Dear [CEO],
Given our nation’s alarming opioid overdose rates, we write to urge [company name] to submit an application to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for over-the-counter (OTC) status for your naloxone product, a desperately needed step to ensure widespread and affordable access to this critical overdose reversal medication. We ask that you act quickly given the scale of need at this moment. Lives are at stake.
The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically exacerbated the opioid and substance use disorder epidemic in this country, with reported overdoses and deaths spiking to historic levels. In fact, alarming data show that last year, the United States experienced a record 100,306 overdose deaths. These trends show no signs of abating as overdose deaths continue to rise.
Given the scale of need at this moment, it has never been more important to adopt opioid overdose prevention and reversal strategies on a wide scale. This includes steps to increase access to affordable naloxone, which is a proven, effective tool to reduce medical emergencies, drug overdoses, and deaths. A study conducted in Massachusetts found that substantially increased access to naloxone reduced opioid overdose mortality rates by 46 percent. With the support of naloxone manufacturers, we can significantly increase access to the medication and help mitigate the worsening crisis of drug overdose deaths.
One of the most important actions that can be taken right now is for manufacturers to submit applications to make naloxone available over the counter without delay. While many states have standing orders and workarounds that allow individuals to acquire naloxone without a prescription, regulatory hurdles continue to create unnecessary barriers. Further, a formal switch to OTC status will help reduce stigma and encourage the widespread use of this critical medication during emergencies. Additionally, market prices for naloxone remain prohibitively high, putting additional financial strain on community organizations working to reduce overdoses. Creating additional OTC naloxone options will help to reduce prices for those who need it, as well as for first responders and other good Samaritans, and increase the supply in at-risk communities.
The FDA strongly supports this change and has proactively created, tested, and validated the key labeling information and data needed to approve an OTC version of naloxone. As part of this effort to expedite the application process, the FDA has provided model OTC labels and usage instructions for the nasal spray and auto-injector versions of naloxone. Now the responsibility lies with manufacturers to submit the paperwork needed to make this switch. By doing so, [company name] will be taking an important step in the ongoing effort to prevent deadly opioid overdoses.
We strongly urge you to support the widespread access to naloxone, and request that you quickly apply to the FDA for OTC status.
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