Naloxone, more commonly known as Narcan, is a medication best known for reversing opioid overdoses. When administered, it blocks the effects that opioids have on the body and helps the body resume breathing.

As of Feb. 15, a panel from the Food and Drug Administration unanimously voted to have naloxone become available as an over-the-counter nasal spray to help fight the ongoing opioid epidemic.

The enterprise to have Narcan become more accessible not only affects the country as a whole but currently is a significant ambition for Ohio college campuses. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, working with his initiative RecoveryOhio, the Ohio Department of Health and the Ohio Department of Higher Education, has created an emergency plan to place emergency naloxone kits around public college and university campuses all around Ohio. The kits were compared to being like Automated External Defibrillator kits.

According to the Kent State University police report log, though many altercations with drugs and controlled substances are normally connected to the use of marijuana, which is very rarely connected to fatal overdoses alone as opposed to opioids, there have been instances where Kent State University students have been found to possess a controlled substance.

Sergeant Tricia Knoles of the Kent State University police department believes that Narcan being placed on college campuses and becoming more readily available can help in various situations in addition to an overdose.

“Anytime we can assist in a life-saving measure, we should assist especially if there is access [to Narcan] like there is to AED kits,” Sergeant Knoles said. “Narcan is used in other circumstances. When most people think of Narcan they think of an overdose related to opioids. There have been times that Narcan has been used on a child that has been in a purse and got pills or someone who took medication after already taking their dose which they had forgotten about. In my opinion, Narcan is just another life-saving tool.”

Freshman Mackenzie Wolf, who lives in Manchester Hall, also agreed that having Narcan across campus would be beneficial. She was very enthusiastic about having the kits possibly spread around Kent State campuses.

“I think having an available Narcan supply over campus can’t hurt,” Wolf said. “[It can] only help.”

If approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Narcan nasal spray would become accessible to nearly everyone and could be found in as common places such as supermarkets, convenience stores and vending machines. The final decision on the administration of the drug will come from the FDA in the coming weeks.

Lex Ogilvie is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].