By: The Governor’s Press Office BLOG: Patriot-News: ‘I Want to Save Lives’: Gov. Tom Wolf Equips Capitol Police with Overdose Reversal Drug Substance Use Disorder, The Blog Yesterday, Governor Tom Wolf announced that the Pennsylvania Capitol Police are now trained to administer and will carry the life-saving opioid overdose reversal antidote known as naloxone. The article “‘I want to save lives’: Gov. Tom Wolf equips Capitol Police with overdose reversal drug,” in the Patriot-News gave a summary of the event. Here are a few key takeaways from that article:Governor Wolf made this announcement as part of a larger administration effort to combat the scourge of opioid overdoses in Pennsylvania.“Gov. Tom Wolf announced that the Capitol Police will now be carrying Naloxone, which can save opioid drug overdose patients from certain death. Law enforcement agencies — including those in Cumberland and Dauphin Counties — have begun carrying the life-saving drug in an effort to combat increased overdose calls. ‘I want to save lives,’ Wolf said. ‘That’s the bottom line.’”Opioid addiction is a growing problem in Pennsylvania that needs to be aggressively addressed.“Opioid addiction and overdoses have increased significantly in Pennsylvania. Last year, about 2,400 Pennsylvanians died from drug overdoses. ‘That’s more than we lost in automobile accidents in 2014,’ Wolf said. ‘This is a huge problem.’ Health Secretary Dr. Karen Murphy referred to the recent drug overdose problem as the ‘the worst public health crisis that we have experienced.’”The Wolf Administration has made making Naloxone widely available in Pennsylvania a priority.“The Wolf Administration has been pushing for the spread of Naloxone since the governor took office in January. Previously, Naloxone was available to people through a prescription. Then, the drug was made available to first responders who arrive on scene of a drug overdose. And then In October, Physician General Dr. Rachel Levine signed a standing order that allows anyone in Pennsylvania to purchase Naloxone at pharmacies without a prescription.”For the entire article written by Christian Alexandersen from the Patriot-News, click here. Like Governor Tom Wolf on Facebook: Facebook.com/GovernorWolf
December 03, 2015 SHARE Email Facebook Twitter