Anti-opioid kits to be issued to Grant County law enforcement

Law enforcement throughout Grant County will soon be equipped with the nasal anti-opioid spray naloxone to help reduce overdose-related deaths.

The sheriff’s office will first train deputies and then issue to them about 100 single-dose spray dispensers sold under the brand name Narcan. The doses will be used to help revive victims of opioid overdose.

Opioids include heroin, morphine, fentanyl, codeine, hydrocodone, oxycodone, meperidine, and methadone. All of these drugs are linked to addiction, and in many cases, law enforcement officers are the first to arrive at the scene of an opioid overdose.

An opioid overdose causes a person’s breathing to dangerously slow or stop. Naloxone can help counteract those life-threatening effects.

The kits will not only be used to help victims of opioid overdose, but can also be used to help officers and K-9’s who may be exposed to an opioid.

A grant from the Washington Department of Social and Health Services and managed by the University of Washington’s Center for Opioid Safety Education, Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute is paying for the kits. A two-pack of the spray kits costs about $75.

Other Grant County law enforcement agencies, including Moses Lake, Ephrata, Grand Coulee, Quincy, Mattawa, Royal City, Soap Lake and Warden will also be training their officers on the use of naloxone.