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WOONSOCKET, R.I. — CVS Health has announced today that naloxone opioid overdose-reversal medication is now available without an individual prescription at all of the 300 CVS Pharmacy locations in Michigan, including those located inside Target stores. In addition, the retailer announced it will be available at 77 CVS locations in Oaklahoma and 20 CVS locations in Delaware. Those states will include pharmacies in Target locations as well.
CVS Pharmacists will be able to dispense naloxone to patients without an individual prescription under a statewide protocol giving pharmacists prescriptive authority to dispense naloxone.
“Naloxone is a safe and effective antidote to opioid overdoses and by expanding access to this medication in our pharmacies in Michigan we can help save lives,” said Tom Davis, vice president of Pharmacy Professional Services at CVS Pharmacy.
“CVS Health is dedicated to helping the communities we serve address and prevent prescription drug abuse and we are expanding access to naloxone to give more people a chance to get the help they need for recovery.”
“Michigan families have lost too many loved ones to the opioid epidemic,” said Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Michigan). “Naloxone is a critical life-saving drug for those who suffer from addiction and I applaud those working to make it more accessible.”
Today’s naloxone announcement builds on CVS Health’s commitment to helping communities address and prevent prescription drug abuse by focusing on prevention and safe medication disposal. In 2015, CVS Health launched a community outreach program called Pharmacists Teach, which brings CVS pharmacists to local schools to talk to students about the dangers of drug abuse. More than 300,000 students across the U.S. have already taken part in the program. High school teachers and administrators can learn more about bringing Pharmacists Teach to their school at www.CVSHealth.com.
CVS Health has also joined with the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids to create the Medication Disposal for Safer Communities Program, which has donated more than 800 units to police departments around the country, collecting more than 100 metric tons of unwanted medication. In September, CVS Health announced it would expand the program to 750 locations inside CVS Pharmacies by mid-2018, for a total of 1,550 safe medication disposal locations.
In that recent announcement, the company also said it would enhance opioid utilization management to align with the CDC Guideline for CVS Caremark PBM clients and members, complementing measures already in place. And, the CVS Health Foundation added a $2 million commitment to previous investments in mitigating prescription drug abuse with support for Community Health Centers providing medication-assisted treatment and other addiction recovery services.
With the addition of these three states, CVS Pharmacy now dispenses naloxone to patients without an individual prescription in these 46 states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
