If you’ve ever wondered where you can buy the lifesaving medication naloxone in Baltimore, the city health department has a useful resource for you.
Two weeks have passed since Health Commissioner Leana Wen signed a standing order making the drug available over the counter at every pharmacy in Baltimore. Her order coincided with a new state law taking effect that eliminated requirements for buyers to fill out paperwork to obtain the medication.
This week, the health department has been sharing links to its new online map of pharmacies selling naloxone, also known by its brand name Narcan. The map pinpoints about 100 locations within the city limits, as well as about a half-dozen others just outside in Baltimore County.
Check out our map with pharmacies in Baltimore carrying #naloxone to save someone from #opioidoverdose: https://t.co/ZWdbluxCzw pic.twitter.com/5tJyKraZhi
— B’more City Health (@BMore_Healthy) June 15, 2017
The city needs people equipped to save overdose victims’ lives now more than ever. Baltimore bore the brunt of a 66-percent climb in overdose deaths last year, accounting for nearly a third of all fatalities recorded across the state. About nine in 10 overdose deaths in Maryland were related to opioid use.
Wen’s ongoing campaign to inform and train more Baltimoreans to have naloxone at the ready has paid off. At the time she signed the standing order earlier this month, the health department had trained an estimated 20,000 individuals.
The department keeps tutorials on its website to show how easy it is to administer the drug and save an overdose victim’s life. Click here to watch.
