Kudos to Kansas legislators and Gov. Sam Brownback.
The Associated Press reported Friday first responders soon will be allowed to administer life-saving drugs that stop the effects of opioid overdoses.
Abuse of such pain-killers as oxycodone and hydrocodone, prescription drugs that occasionally find their way to the street, has become epidemic in some states. Fortunately as yet that isn’t true in Kansas. Nationally, the AP found, opioid overdoses rose 28 percent between 2013 and 2015.
With passage of the law, first responders may administer “opioid antagonists,” such as naloxone. The drugs counter the effects of opioids. Kansas joins 47 states in the fight against opioid abuse.
Legislative passage was unanimous and Brownback quickly seized the opportunity to make it a law.
— Bob Johnson
