Is Narcan Availability just Enabling Addicts in America?

[corbe]

Narcan, also known as naloxone, is an opiate antidote that has saved countless lives by reversing opioid overdoses. However, its use has sparked debates about whether it enables addiction or serves as a crucial tool in harm reduction. Let’s explore both sides:

Saving Lives:

Narcan saves lives: It rapidly reverses the effects of opioids, allowing individuals to breathe again and preventing fatal overdoses.
Immediate availability: First responders, including police officers, carry Narcan kits to administer during emergencies.
No addiction potential: Narcan is not addictive and does not produce a high. In fact, it can induce withdrawal symptoms, which are uncomfortable for those addicted to opioids.

Enabling Addiction:

Safety net perception: Some argue that Narcan creates a safety net for drug abusers, leading them to take more risks with their drug use.
Relapse cycle: Without addressing the underlying addiction, Narcan merely revives individuals without providing long-term solutions.

Repeat overdoses: Police officers often encounter the same individuals multiple times, reviving them with Narcan. This cycle highlights the lack of sufficient treatment options2.
In summary, while Narcan unquestionably saves lives, it is not a comprehensive solution. Combining its availability with effective addiction treatment and support services is crucial for breaking the cycle of addiction. As one officer aptly put it, “Dead people can’t recover” – emphasizing the importance of keeping individuals alive to give them a chance at recovery.

Bob Dylan - Subterranean Homesick Blues (Official HD Video)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGxjIBEZvx0

[libertybele]

It does both, but at least with the availability of Narcan the addict may have a chance; provided that it is is available and can be administered in enough time.

[Smokin Joe]

In some cases, the people who were saved have their 'Come to Jesus' moment, and clean up their act. (I know one, personally, who would not have survived to get his crap together had it not been for the efforts of a convenience store clerk who noticed him being dumped in the parking lot, locked his till and ran out and gave CPR until a policeman arrived with NARCAN. Otherwise, he'd be dead. He cleaned up his act and is now a productive member of society.

There is that cold streak that says let the problem take care of itself, but being able to see both sides of it, I'd say keep administering it. Those who don't get the hint can and will eventually find a place where they can die of their addiction beyond the timely reprievee that Narcan can provide.

It's a sad waste of life for anyone who is addicted, and especially for those who OD and don't make it, because  with the mix of drugs coming into the country and the lack of quality control  there is no telling what they are running down that spike.

[corbe]

 dem run cities are Enabling them.



Yes, Safe Smoking Kits Include Free Crack Pipes. We Know Because We Got Them.
Free Beacon Investigates: Five cities, five free crack pipes

Patrick Hauf   May 12, 2022

Crack pipes are distributed in safe-smoking kits up and down the East Coast, raising questions about the Biden administration's assertion that its multimillion-dollar harm reduction grant program wouldn't funnel taxpayer dollars to drug paraphernalia.

The findings are the result of Washington Free Beacon visits to five harm-reduction organizations and calls to over two dozen more. In fact, every organization we visited—facilities in Boston, New York City, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Richmond, Va.—included crack pipes in the kits.

The kits became the subject of national attention in the wake of a Free Beacon report in February indicating that a $30 million harm-reduction program was set to fund the distribution of free crack pipes in "safe-smoking kits." Pressed on the matter in a Feb. 9 press briefing, White House press secretary Jen Psaki issued a full-throated denial.



<..snip..>

https://freebeacon.com/biden-administration/yes-safe-smoking-kits-include-free-crack-pipes-we-know-because-we-got-them/

[Wingnut]

Need another option.

[corbe]

   What could that possibly be @Wingnut 

   Give me 1 small clue, I'm stoned.

[Gefn]

@corbe

back in the day before there was internet, I spent a Saturday afternoon listening to that song on my record player, trying to make out all the words.

It took a few hours if I recall.

Of course this was also before music videos were on TV

[mountaineer]

In some cases, the people who were saved have their 'Come to Jesus' moment, and clean up their act. ...

Yes, and that's a wonderful thing when it happens. Unfortunately, there are far too many cases where a junkie gets several doses of Narcan and regains consciousness, only to curse out whomever saved his life - and then resume injecting/smoking/snorting whatever it was that nearly killed him in the first place.

[Smokin Joe]

Yes, and that's a wonderful thing when it happens. Unfortunately, there are far too many cases where a junkie gets several doses of Narcan and regains consciousness, only to curse out whomever saved his life - and then resume injecting/smoking/snorting whatever it was that nearly killed him in the first place.

All you can do is give people a chance, but rehab/recovery is up to them.
They have to make the choice.
If they don't, it will likely lead to their deaths. 

I pray for those I know who have/have had problems, and that's one of the best things that can be done.

Said with grace, at meals: "Almighty Father, please surround our family and friends with Your Angels, and protect them from every evil."

It goes without saying all here are considered friends.

[libertybele]

All you can do is give people a chance, but rehab/recovery is up to them.
They have to make the choice.
If they don't, it will likely lead to their deaths. 

I pray for those I know who have/have had problems, and that's one of the best things that can be done.

Said with grace, at meals: "Almighty Father, please surround our family and friends with Your Angels, and protect them from every evil."

It goes without saying all here are considered friends.

Amen!

[mountaineer]

All you can do is give people a chance, but rehab/recovery is up to them.
They have to make the choice.
If they don't, it will likely lead to their deaths. 

Indeed. Saw this firsthand with my brother,  who left 30 days of in-patient rehab and headed directly to the bar. It took a few more years for him to decide to stop drinking.