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More Grant Funding Made Available For Overdose Antidote Naloxone

Governor Tom Wolf
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https://www.flickr.com/photos/governortomwolf/

Attorney General Greg Zoeller Wednesday announced another round of grant funding to distribute the overdose intervention drug naloxone to first responders around the state. Zoeller says a more sustainable funding source is necessary.

Previous grants for naloxone provided kits of the drug to law enforcement and first responders in about 45 counties.  Zoeller says new funding – $400,000 – will expand that further, with the eventual goal of statewide supply.

The money comes from a settlement with pharmaceutical companies over off-label and deceptive marketing. But Zoeller says that’s not a long-term solution.

“Next session is a budget year so it absolutely needs to be put in the state budget, local budgets. I’m calling on everybody to focus on this as something that needs to be addressed," Zoeller says. 

Zoeller says funding at the state level is vital because the drug can be purchased in bulk, reducing its price. 

Brandon Smith is excited to be working for public radio in Indiana. He has previously worked in public radio as a reporter and anchor in mid-Missouri for KBIA Radio out of Columbia. Prior to that, he worked for WSPY Radio in Plano, Illinois as a show host, reporter, producer and anchor. His first job in radio was in another state capitol, in Jefferson City, Missouri, as a reporter for three radio stations around Missouri. Brandon graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor of Journalism in 2010, with minors in political science and history. He was born and raised in Chicago.
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