Idaho health agency relaunches Narcan program

Many organizations across Idaho that provide overdose reversal drugs to their communities have been scrambling to find a new supply since last spring, when the state suspended its distribution program.

Monday, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare announced a new partnership and the relaunch of the Narcan distribution program. Narcan is a brand name for nasal spray naloxone, which can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.

The nasal spray kits are available to request on the health department’s website.

During the 2023 legislative session, lawmakers added a requirement on the budget bill that the funding for the program only be provided to law enforcement. But the program had been operating through a nonprofit and used by churches, hotels and other groups in addition to first responders. Many of those groups were left scrambling when the state had to halt the program in response to the new requirements.

Now, Kootenai County Fire & Rescue will operate the program and coordinate with local groups to provide training on how to use them if requested. The fire district did not respond to a call requesting comment.

Latah Recovery Center in Moscow was one of the groups that said this fall that it was scrambling to find a new supplier for Narcan.

“It was of concern, having a finite supply, and it kept us from promoting it (Narcan) as much as we would’ve liked to,” said Shaun Hogan, director of crisis services at Latah Recovery Center.

The fire district was awarded nearly $1.5 million in total for the contract and was one of four entities that applied, a department spokesperson said. Around $1.2 million is for the naloxone product.

Hogan said the recovery center is moving forward with plans to put free Narcan vending machines in the community. This was a process that began before the state program was relaunched, but the news Monday bolsters the security of it, he said.

“There’s relief in knowing that we can resupply now and can go back to try harder to raise awareness for the general public to have access to it,” he said.

The distribution system will work the same way as it did before, with organizations being able to request a supply and the fire district will fulfill orders and mail the medicine to requestors.

This fall, the Bonneville Sheriff’s Office had entered into a stopgap agreement with the state to distribute the medicine in eastern Idaho until the program was fully relaunched.

Sheriff Sam Hulse said the department ordered 180 units, which each contain two nasal sprays, and had distributed many of them to the Center for Hope in Idaho Falls, as well as some to first responders in Lemhi County, and others. This was meant as a temporary measure to maintain access, and as the Kootenai County fire district gets up and running, Hulse said he’ll “fade into the background.”

“I think it’s a good thing that this other organization, Kootenai Fire, has taken it on,” Hulse said. “They’re taking on a pretty large distribution responsibility, and I think as the months wear on, they’re going to have more and more demand on that.”

He said the department still has kits on hand that can be requested through the sheriff’s office or through the Center for Hope.

The health department said in a news release that it’s expecting a high volume of requests as the state program gets back into gear.

In 2022, the state’s previous partner for the program, Idaho Harm Reduction Project, distributed 25,367 kits across the state to substance use treatment clinics, churches, schools, mental health offices and more, according to the 2022 distribution report. This was a 187% increase over distribution in 2021, the report said.

Hulse said he anticipates there will still be a high need for Narcan because the issue of fentanyl — a potent opioid — continues to scourge his community and others across Idaho.

The Bonneville Sheriff’s Office has seized over 100,000 fentanyl pills this year.

“The level of problem is just mind-numbing, how much product is out there,” he said. “If you think this is a problem that can’t touch you, you’re incorrect.”

Groups may request free Narcan kits at the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare website under Behavioral Health, Substance Use Disorder and Naloxone information.

The request form can also be found under Overdose Response on the Behavioral Health section of the department’s website.

Guido covers Idaho politics for the Lewiston Tribune, Moscow-Pullman Daily News and Idaho Press of Nampa. She may be contacted at lguido@idahopress.com and can be found on Twitter @EyeOnBoiseGuido.