Doses of Narcan in a vending machine at a safe drug site in Providence, R.I.Credit…Erin Schaff/The New York Times
The nasal spray reverses opioid overdoses and public health officials hope that making it more widely available could save lives and reduce the nation’s high rates of drug fatalities. Narcan, a prescription nasal spray that reverses opioid overdoses, can now be sold over the counter, the Food and Drug Administration said on Wednesday, authorizing a move long-sought by public health officials and treatment experts, who hope wider availability of the medicine will reduce the nation’s alarmingly high drug fatality rates.