Proposed Republican cuts could undo opioid epidemic progress in Appalachia

A medic with the Cincinnati fire department nasally administers naloxone to a man at a gas station in downtown Cincinnati in 2017. Photograph: John Minchillo/AP

For healthcare specialists around western Appalachia, the recent dramatic fall in opioid overdose deaths has been nothing short of spectacular.

Last year saw a record decline of 30% in Kentucky to 1,410 people. In neighboring West Virginia, state health authorities estimate that there are at least 318 more people alive today due in large part to the availability and widespread use of naloxone or Narcan, a nasal spray that when administered in time, can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.