Manufacturer Of Overdose Drug To Pay Massachusetts $325,000
BOSTON (CBS) — Opiate overdoses killed more than 1,200 people last year in Massachusetts.
Related: Easton Public Schools To Carry Narcan To Combat Drug Overdoses
And on this International Overdose Awareness Day, there's a bit of good news to report.
There's a new deal that will help our state's first responders save lives by making it cheaper to buy a drug that stops an overdose in its' tracks.
Naoxone, commonly known as Narcan, is usually given nasally.
It can revive someone overdosing on heroin or other opiates, buying time to get them to a hospital.
But the price of the drug has skyrocketed from $22 per dose, to $44 and beyond.
"We saw Narcan priced as high as $66, $70 at times throughout the state," says Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey.
On Monday, Healey announced a first-of-its-kind agreement with the manufacturer of Narcan.
The company, Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, will give the state $325,000 which will go in a trust fund.
"This fund will allow cities and towns to buy Narcan directly from the Department of Public Health and get the best possible price," says Healey.
In 2014, first responders used about 11,000 doses of Narcan, Healey said.
"This money will allow us to make available the equivalent of 15,000 doses to every fire department and police department in the state at a sharply reduced rate," she said.
Jeanne Flynn used Narcan to revive her own son.
Unfortunately, he died a few months ago.
She attended Monday's announcement to show her support.
"Every life you save is a possibility of something that could turn, in recovery, into something of a shining star that we don't know about," she says. "There is a lot of goodness that comes out of recovery and there is no recovery without Narcan."
WBZ asked Healey how she convinced the manufacturer to put up that amount of money, but she wouldn't give us details.
It does seem to be the beginning of a trend, though.
Two other states have won rebates from the same company, which is the only one that makes Narcan as a nasal spray.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Kim Tunnicliffe reports
