Beginning in the 90s, heart disease became a major problem for Americans. This caused millions of Americans to voluntarily train to administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR. Each year, the American Heart Association trains more than 12 million people in this life-saving procedure.<\/p>\n
Now it seems we are facing another public health crisis: the deadly opioid epidemic. With tens of thousands of American lives lost each year to drug overdose, it\u2019s critical that we begin training Americans to administer Narcan (naloxone), just as we did with CPR, to help save the lives of our neighbors, family members and friends.<\/strong><\/p>\n Issuing the\u00a0first Surgeon General\u2019s advisory in 14 years, Surgeon General Jerome Adams has urged every American to carry and be trained to administer this life-saving drug. In a recent\u00a0interview with NPR, Adams said unequivocally, \u201cWe should think of naloxone like an EpiPen or CPR. Unfortunately, over half of the overdoses that are occurring are occurring in homes, so we want everyone to be armed to respond.\u201d<\/p>\n While I encourage everyone to take a CPR course, performing CPR properly can be challenging for those who do not do it routinely, especially in a moment of crisis. This is why CPR recertification<\/a> is so important.<\/p>\n In contrast, administering naloxone (Narcan) is easy even for non-medical personnel, and giving it quickly after an opioid overdose rapidly reverses respiratory depression \u2013 the primary cause of death. Narcan is safe and works in seconds. Two simple delivery methods are currently available in the U.S. \u2013 an intramuscular auto-injector (like the EpiPen), and a nasal spray. Today, 49 of 50 states have standing orders allowing anyone to buy and administer Narcan without a prescription. As the drug epidemic has grown, Narcan has saved an untold number of lives, including\u00a0over 17,500 cases in New York alone\u00a0last year.<\/p>\n