TRENTON, N.J. – All New Jersey school districts can now obtain free naloxone (commonly known as “Narcan”) through the state’s Human Service’s Naloxone DIRECT program.
“In order to obtain naloxone, school districts must place orders through their respective County Office,” according to a press release from the New Jersey Departments of Human Services and Education. “To do so, school districts will submit a simple form to their County Office with their request for naloxone. Naloxone will be ordered by the case, and each case contains 12 nasal sprays, or 24 total doses. Each County Office will then submit an order for naloxone kits for all the districts within their county through the Naloxone DIRECT portal. The naloxone cases are then delivered to the County Offices, which then distribute the orders to school districts. If a school district has a question about ordering naloxone kits or would like to place an order, they should contact their County Office of Education.”
The antidote can revive a person who is experiencing an opioid overdose. Last year there were 81,083 overdose deaths involving opioids, according to the CDC.
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In 2018, Governor Phil Murphy enacted the requirement that each district board of education, board of trustees of a charter school, and chief school administrator of a nonpublic school serving any of the grades nine through 12, must develop and adopt policies and procedures to maintain and administer an opioid antidote to any student, school personnel, or other person believed to be experiencing an opioid overdose during regular school hours or during on-site school-sponsored events.
Students will not have direct access to naloxone. Certified school nurses have the primary responsibility for the emergency administration of it. In the event a nurse is not present, school employees designated and trained by the school district will administer the antidote.
The Department of Education previously released guidance in 2019 to provide additional information on who has access to naloxone, which can be found here.
First launched in 2022, the Naloxone DIRECT program works to provide first responder agencies, mobile outreach providers, opioid treatment programs, harm reduction programs and other eligible agencies the opportunity to easily request direct shipments of the antidote online, anytime they need it, at no charge. Since its launch, Naloxone DIRECT has distributed approximately 285,240 two dose kits.
