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In the midst of the commotion and arguments about how to keep his heart beating, another man who was there named Terry Terry turned to Lorraine and said, "Have you got any naloxone?"Naloxone is an opioid antagonist, meaning it counters the effects of opioids like heroin and oxycodone. A user overdoses when the receptors in the brain become overwhelmed by the drugs. Naloxone knocks opioids off these receptors, allowing normal functions—such as breathing—to resume.Lorraine didn't have any of the lifesaving drug on her that night, nor did anyone else who was there. But from early next year, when it becomes readily available at Australian pharmacies, it will be more likely that someone does. (Naloxone is currently available over-the-counter in a number of US states.)On October 1, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) announced its interim decision to down-schedule naloxone in single-use pre-filled syringes. It will go from being a Schedule 4 prescription-only substance to Schedule 3, making it an over-the-counter (OTC) medicine. The TGA's final decision will be announced in late November, but according to Angelo Pricolo, the pharmacist who submitted the application to reschedule the drug, the interim decision is a "virtual rubber stamp," which means naloxone will be available without a script as of February 1 next year.Read on Motherboard: Meet the Fake Heroin Behind the Next Overdose Epidemic
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James was watching the third State of Origin game at home in Sydney with a friend last year. They'd taken some prescription painkillers, which they'd mixed with benzodiazepines. It was after his friend shot up some heroin that he noticed something was off. "She was slumped over," he recalled. "When I pulled her back, her face was all blue."RELATED: How Not to Die of an Overdose
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Of late, Australia's first take-home naloxone program, trialled in the Australian Capital Territory, has made some breakthroughs. Along with naloxone's potential to save lives and minimal side effects, the TGA listed the results of this program as one of the reasons for making their decision.Established in April 2012 and run by the Canberra Alliance of Harm Minimisation and Advocacy, the trial has seen the distribution of naloxone to 200 participants, along with training in the use of the drug and overdose management. "It's been very successful. We've had 58 overdose reversals that we know of," said Dave Baxter, coordinator of the program. "It's quite likely there's been more that haven't been reported."The Centre for Research Excellence into Injecting Drug Use was another institution that made a submission in support of OTC naloxone. Professor Paul Dietze, one of the chief investigators at the center, said the decision to make naloxone a Schedule 3 substance is an important one in the global context. "There isn't enough training out in the community about how to access and use it," Dietze explained. "Hopefully the down-scheduling will change that situation."Yesterday, Lorraine was back at the MSIC in Kings Cross, still a little shaken. She was given a free naloxone kit and undertook the training on how to administer it. "That would have made a whole hell of a difference, if we had it then and there," she said, referring to the events of the night before. "He would have been sitting up two minutes into it."Follow Paul on Twitter."It's been very successful. We've had 58 overdose reversals that we know of."—Dave Baxter, coordinator of the Canberra Alliance of Harm Minimisation and Advocacy