Pharmac announced today that injections of the overdose reversing medicine naloxone would be supplied to needle exchange sites in a move the NZ Drug Foundation has dubbed "great news".
Naloxone is a medicine that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose by attaching to opioid receptors and blocking the effects. It can reverse overdoses of drugs such as heroin, oxycodone, fentanyl or synthetic opioids.
"We have heard from groups like the New Zealand Drug Foundation that there's a real need for it to be available at needle exchange sites," Pharmac pharmaceuticals director Geraldine MacGibbon said.
In late September, Pharmac said it was made aware of fake oxycodone tablets being sold illegally in New Zealand.
They contained a synthetic opioid six times more potent than fentanyl and have been linked to at least one death and several hospitalisations.
Enabling needle exchange sites to be able to hold supplies will help those staff with their efforts to reduce the harm associated with opioid use in the community, MacGibbon said.
The NZ Drug Foundation described the arrival of naloxone into needle exchanges as "great news".
"Opioids are already one of the leading causes of overdose deaths in New Zealand and there are potent opioids like nitazenes now appearing in our drug supply," executive director Sarah Helm said.
A report from the NZ Drug Foundation found that deaths from drug overdoses increased 54% between 2017 and 2021, with opioids featuring in almost half of those fatalities.
Nitazenes can be as much as 25 times more potent than fentanyl, Helm said.
"Having naloxone available without a prescription is hugely helpful and will save lives.
"We still need other community organisations and drug checking providers to be able to give out naloxone easily in the event of widespread potent opioid adulteration of the drug supply."
Helm also said that first responders such as police able to carry naloxone would improve accessibility, with a funding application for an nasal spray form of naloxone received by Pharmac at the beginning of the year.
Medsafe made amendments earlier this year to the classification of naloxone to allow ampoules with needles or syringes to be held by needle exchange sites without a prescription.
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