Gov. Peter Shumlin announces all Vermont pharmacies will be allowed to sell the heroin antidote drug Narcan without a prescription.

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Advertisement Narcan to be made available at all Vermont pharmacies Governor announces Walgreens will be first to carry heroin antidote Share Shares Copy Link Copy

Gov. Peter Shumlin announced all Vermont pharmacies will be allowed to sell the heroin antidote drug Narcan without a prescription. Shumlin made the announcement Thursday with Health Commissioner Harry Chen. Watch this story The governor said Walgreens will be the first to offer the drug starting Sept. 1. Narcan is used to reverse the affects of heroin. Walgreens already offers the nasal spray in several other states nationwide. It will also install a safe medication disposal box in its South Burlington store. “This has been an even more dangerous and risky summer for people who are addicted and who unknowingly buy drugs laced with strong, potentially deadly, additives that cause them to overdose,” Shumlin said at a press conference. Chen said the new measure was to ensure that people who are addicted to heroin, and their family and friends, have easy access to the life-saving drug. Shumlin added that a more dangerous version of heroin called carfentanil was expected to begin appearing in Vermont. "Clearly the aim of making naloxone more widely available is to prevent deaths," Chen said. He said first responders use Narcan two times each day on average to revive overdose victims. It's been used 241 times across Vermont in the first six months of 2016. There have also been 44 overdose deaths in that same time period.