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DEERFIELD, Ill. – Walgreens announced Wednseday it is expanding access to an over the counter, life-saving medication with the launch of Walgreens Brand Naloxone HCI Nasal Spray.
The product—which retails for $34.99, a lower price than the comparable national brand product at Walgreens stores, can reverse an overdose from opioids. The product is currently available online and will be chainwide in all stores by the end of the month, where it can be found in the pain aisle, providing a critical point of access for the nearly 10 million customers and patients the company serves every day in local communities throughout the U.S.
Walgreens Brand Naloxone HCl Nasal Spray can be used in the event of an opioid overdose to temporarily reverse the effects of opioids – including heroin, illicit fentanyl, and prescription opioid medications—when administered in time.
“As a leading healthcare services company rooted in a retail pharmacy footprint, Walgreens is committed to removing barriers to naloxone access,” said Dr. Priya Mammen, senior medical director in the Walgreens Office of Clinical Integrity. “As an emergency physician, I have for years combatted the devastating impacts of the opioid overdose epidemic and worked tirelessly to save lives. Expanding access to naloxone is a critical step in empowering individuals, families, and communities to act and be part of the solution. We must all confront this crisis head-on to bring change.”
Naloxone works by quickly blocking the effects of opioids on the brain, restoring normal breathing and preventing death due to overdose. Despite its proven efficacy, access to naloxone remains limited in many communities, exacerbating the toll of the opioid epidemic. Walgreens is offering naloxone at a lower price than the comparable national brand product at Walgreens stores to further enable access to this life-saving medication.
This launch follows the approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. For information on how to use Walgreens Brand Naloxone HCl Nasal Spray and frequently asked questions, please visit Naloxone – OTC Narcan Nasal Spray (walgreens.com).
Walgreens is leveraging its people, trust and footprint to enable the results that matter most in healthcare while delivering care for communities and value for partners, as it expands its reach beyond neighborhood pharmacies into the fastest growing areas of healthcare. As one of the largest providers of pharmacy healthcare services in the U.S., the company understands the needs of the communities it serves and is uniquely positioned to meaningfully impact access and affordability to healthcare services.
