New Guidance Recommends All Federal Facilities Have Access to Naloxone

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the General Services Administration have announced new guidance recommending that all federal facilities across the nation include overdose reversal medications in their safety stations on site. The recommendation will make lifesaving medications like naloxone more readily available in case of an emergency situation.

“Today, we are taking the historic step to recommend that every federal facility across the nation has lifesaving overdose reversal medications like naloxone on site,” said White House Office of National Drug Control Director Rahul Gupta, MD. “These lifesaving medications should be as readily available as fire extinguishers or defibrillators in all public spaces, from schools, to housing communities, to restaurants, retail and other businesses. And now, as the nation’s largest employer, we are leading by example.”

The updated guidelines expand the concept of an automated external defibrillators program by introducing the “safety station,” which would enable anyone located within a federal facility to access the necessary tools quickly and easily to respond to an emergency situation.