SALT LAKE CITY — On International Overdose Awareness Day, Utahns united to grieve loved ones lost to drug overdoses as well as bring awareness to the community that these kinds of deaths are preventable.
Since 2015, Naloxone Utah has been administering free naloxone kits across the state. It’s a medicine that can rapidly reverse the effects of an overdose.
Medical director Jennifer Plumb says at first there was reluctance among Utahns to embrace naloxone, but it has become more accepted statewide.
"This is completely legal for anyone in the state of Utah to carry, it is a completely safe medication, the thing we love about it is you can be completely non-medical have just a little bit of training and potentially save a life,” Plumb explained. "You can also never hurt someone with naloxone."
Plumb said that for the first time over the summer, she had parents ask for naloxone to give to their kids going away for college.
While Utah has seen fewer overdose deaths in Utah since 2014, Plumb says the pandemic has set the state back a considerable amount.
To view naloxone training events or learn more, click here.
