An drug that can save the lives of people overdosing on drugs like heroin, has seen a big increase in distribution around the state.
In an effort to reduce overdoses in Michigan, more than 60 percent of the state’s pharmacies with controlled substance licenses are permitted to dispense naloxone to people at risk of an overdose, as well as their friends and family.
Bob Wheaton is a public information officer with the department of health and human services.
“Since May of 2017 pharmacies in Michigan have dispensed a total of 10,328 orders of naloxone.”
Wheaton said more than three-thousand of those naloxone orders were dispensed between April and July 1 of this year, showing an upward trend in the number of Michiganders purchasing the drug.
He said utilizing naloxone quickly can be the difference between life and death, and the use of the drug is an important step in dealing with the overdose epidemic.