A.G.: First Responders Can Carry, Administer Naloxone

Earlier this month, the state's Attorney General's Office ruled that law enforcement officials can administer naloxone, a medication designed to counteract the effects of opioids, on overdosing individuals. The ruling came after the Texas Medical Board asked whether the state's law requiring prescriptions for opioid antagonists like naloxone applies to those agencies.

Practically, the ruling will bring peace of mind to local jurisdictions already deciding if, when, and how to get the life-saving drug into the hands of personnel. Here in Central Texas, the Travis County Sheriff's Office is working to supply evidence staff and narcotics units with the inhalant. TCSO spokesperson Kristen Dark said that if the Sheriff's Office finds additional funding, it will be able to extend the protection to patrol officers. The benefits will be twofold: Officers themselves will have access to the drug in case they incur an accidental needle stick, and they can use it on community members in need without fear of legal ramifications. "Our deputies will have the right to administer it to the public if they are in distress," Dark said. "We're also looking at our standard operating procedures to look at how we field test drugs and other things to make sure that we're protecting our officers as best we can." The Austin Police Department is "aware of the ruling," according to a PIO. "Because we live in a city where our Emergency Medical Services provide a rapid response time compared to some rural areas, the need is not the same. APD will continue to discuss this issue with the Office of the Medical Director to ensure we are meeting community needs." The department declined to address follow-up questions on implementation.

The two agencies are catching up to calls for more widespread access to the antidote. Last year, the Texas Phar­ma­cy Association allowed its members to choose whether to offer naloxone, though the price tag remains an obstacle for many of those who need it most. Mark Kinzly, co-founder of the Texas Overdose Naloxone Initiative, said that while it's a big step for agencies across the country to have access to the medicine, arming first responders is only part of the solution to addressing overdose deaths: "When we talk about first responders, I think it's important to know that really the first responders most times are family members or peers of people who are using." Kinzly thinks the biggest change from the A.G.'s ruling will be that local agencies now see less liability in putting naloxone in the hands of their officers. "Any time we can add additional venues or means to get this medication out, it's always helpful," he said. "Where this is going to be probably most felt is in rural communities where oftentimes law enforcement is the first people on the scene, whereas in urban communities that might not always be the case."

Kinzly believes that if the state really wanted to address the opioid crisis, the Texas Medical Director would sign off on a standing order allowing any resident to obtain naloxone at pharmacies. "We've never seen a crisis around drug use that even closely compares with what we're seeing with the opioid epidemic," he said. "And because this crosses socioeconomic, racial, political lines, I think more and more people are willing to take a look at getting this medication out to as many people as they can. If it was just the guy in the back alley with the needle in his arm they wouldn't even think twice about doing this; they wouldn't do it. But because it's affecting individuals that are oftentimes having negative events with their own pain medications, that is something that they're willing to take a look at."