MINNESOTA, USA — Editor's Note: The video above originally aired on KARE 11 on Jan. 27, 2022.
The Minnesota Department of Health has a new tool to fight the opioid epidemic.
Naloxone, also known as Narcan, is a drug that can reverse an opioid overdose and potentially save a person's life. To get naloxone into the hands of more Minnesotans, MDH and the Minnesota Department of Human Resources launched the Naloxone Finder, an interactive map that shows you the closest sites where the drug is available.
Naloxone is typically available at pharmacies, designated naloxone access points and syringe service programs. The map also gives you contact information for the site to confirm they have naloxone in stock.
Administered as a shot or nasal spray, naloxone is legal to carry and is only effective for an opioid overdose.
You can find more resources and information from MDH on naloxone here.
“Using this tool can simplify the process of accessing naloxone and in turn, save lives. We want everyone to remember that – if needed – they can be the one to provide rescue steps before 911 in an overdose emergency," Minnesota Commissioner of Health Jan Malcolm said in a statement.
MDH data shows that opioid overdoses have steadily increased over the last 20 years. In 2000, 54 people died in Minnesota from an overdose. In 2020, 678 people died from overdoses.
Recently, the opioid epidemic has been exacerbated by the prevalence of synthetic opioids like fentanyl. In 2019, synthetic opioids were involved in more than 55% of opioid overdose deaths.
In January, law enforcement in northern Minnesota announced more than a dozen arrests in connection to a drug trafficking ring they say moved massive amounts of fentanyl and heroin from Chicago to the Duluth area.
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