Overdose antidote Narcan to be sold over the counter, FDA says

Narcan nasal spray has been approved by the FDA to be sold over-the-counter, potentially raising access to an overdose antidote during the national opioid crisis. (Pat Nabong/Sun-Times file)

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved selling the overdose antidote drug naloxone over the counter, putting it on course to be the first opioid treatment sold without a prescription.

The spray version, sold under the brand name Narcan, will be available for sale by late summer, according to the drug’s manufacturer, Emergent BioSolutions.