Tucson Police Department officers are supplied with Naxolone, or Narcan, which is an antidote to opioid overdose.
.@Tucson_Police announcing the use Narcan, an antidote to opioid addiction @kgun9 pic.twitter.com/NbA41AGDSf
— Priscilla KGUN9 (@PriscillaCasper) November 21, 2016
There have been over 200 deaths in Pima County to opioid overdoses just last year, according to Tucson Police's Chief Magnus.
He says this nasal spray can bring someone out of respiratory arrest or the overdose conditions they are in within seconds.
"When we are first on the scene of someone who has opioid overdose on opioid, heroin, narcotics of various kids, we finally have a resource that can be helpful in those moments when we are there and when EMS arrives and sometimes that time which can be seconds or minutes is the difference literally between life and death," said Chief Magnus.
There were about 200 opioid overdose deaths in Pima County in 2015 @kgun9 pic.twitter.com/m8CAofpEz0
— Priscilla KGUN9 (@PriscillaCasper) November 21, 2016
Over 400 officers will have the medication as part of their Individual First Aid Kit.
Tucson Police training officers to administer Narcan
Narcan will also save police officers' lives when they touch narcotics during investigations.
Chief Magnus says no one should ever hesitate to call 911 in an overdose situation. He says they will not face criminal charges.
