Rep. Marra Proposes Life-Saving Opioid Antagonist Legislation
In an effort to combat the opioid epidemic and provide more access to resources that can save lives, State Representative Tracy Marra (R-141) proposed legislation to create a pilot program to allow certain opioid antagonist medications to be available in vending machines.
“The opioid crisis is destroying lives, families and communities across Connecticut and this simple piece of legislation has the potential to help reverse that damage and save lives,” Representative Marra, a trained pharmacist said. “It is not a cure for Addiction and the opioid crisis that we are in, but it is a step in the right direction.” “Our communities need more access to this life saving drug. Unfortunately, too many lives have been ruined by these dangerous substances.”
Proposed House Bill 6090 – An Act Establishing a Pilot Program to Make Opioid Antagonists Available in Vending Machines – would make Narcan (naloxone), available in the easy-to-access machines. This medication blocks the opioid receptors in the body and acts as a shield against harmful opioids. It can reverse an overdose almost immediately.
Rep. Marra testified in support of the bill during a public hearing on Tuesday, February 7th in the General Law Committee.
“Our healthcare workers, first responders and harm reduction community have been working hard but we need more, people are still using and dying from these illegal and dangerous drugs,” Rep. Marra said. “It’s impossible to eliminate these drugs completely but providing access to naloxone has been proven to save lives. I look forward to the discussions and input from committee members on how to make this proposal even stronger.”
To keep up to date on the issues that are most important to Darien and Norwalk, please go to www.RepMarra.com and sign up for her email newsletter.
