Walgreens announces it will sell nasal Narcan
WILMINGTON, NC (WECT) - Walgreens announced it will sell nasal Narcan nationwide.
Seashore Pharmacy in Wilmington and the North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition have been giving the drug out for free for the past three years. They question Walgreens' decision to charge $136 per box in Wilmington.
"A lot of people with health insurance in our country can't afford this medication, and a lot of working families that I know can't afford this medication either because of the cost barrier," said Robert Childs, the executive director of the North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition. "And they're just going to chance it, and when you chance it, people die."
Patients can get Narcan without a prescription, but Childs said they should be able to get it for free too.
"We need to provide access to this medication in the most affordable way possible, and so while the pharmacy's standing order [providing Narcan] is fantastic, we need to step up as a community and make sure it's available for free and our organization is being a part of that solution," Childs said.
The coalition buys Narcan products and then delivers them to the pharmacy every other week.
"It's very needed," said Davie Waggett, owner of Seashore Pharmacy. "It's an epidemic and so if we don't help, it's only going to get worse. This will not clear itself. This will not go away on its own."
Childs said while it's great that Walgreens has Narcan on its shelves, it's a human right for everyone to have access to the drug.
"People are dying. My loved ones are dying. Others' loved ones are dying and they don't need to die," he said. "If people have access to this lifesaving application with zero chance of abuse, they should have it. I don't understand why anyone would have any other opinion because we know individuals who are dead don't recover."
According to Waggett, up to 10 people per week come in asking for the free Narcan, and that number is growing.
"It has been increasing because they know it's available and they know that they are a risk to themselves so either them or their friends or family members ask us for it," Waggett said.
He said to be able to provide access to the life-saving drug is his pharmacy's small way of helping fight the epidemic.
"I walk them to the register and talk to them on the way," Waggett said. "Usually you don't get but a few seconds with them, a few sound bites with them to let them know, 'Hey, be careful out there. There's some bad stuff out there. Be careful. We care about you and if you don't need it for yourself, make sure you got it for somebody else.'"
When the pharmacy runs out of the free Narcan products, Waggett said they do run patients' insurance cards to sell it.
The coalition also teams up with Winter Park Pharmacy in Wilmington to provide free Narcan.
WECT reached out to Walgreens for a comment about why it is charging this price for Narcan, but haven't heard back.
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