Parents of overdose victims say over-the-counter Narcan a step in the right direction but more needs to be done
The opioid overdose-reversal drug Narcan is now available at some pharmacies over the counter, like Walgreens.
It costs around $45 for two doses, but the California legislature is considering a proposal to cap the cost at $10 or less
This comes as more and more people are spreading awareness around the dangers of fentanyl. Those leading the effort in the Bay Area include families who have lost loved ones to accidental fentanyl overdoses.
During International Overdose Awareness Day, KPIX 5 spoke with Michelle Leopold in Marin County. She's a mother who lost her son Trevor in 2019 to fentanyl poisoning.
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Since then, she's been educating families on how to use Narcan. In Marin County, overdose is the leading cause of death among residents ages 55 and younger.
But it's not just in Marin County. This epidemic has taken loved ones from families throughout the Bay Area, including in San Mateo County.
Liz Walker lost her son Colin to accidental fentanyl poisoning in 2021. He was just starting his senior year at Calrmont High School.
"I think that smile is what so many people remember," Walker said. "The kid just came out smiling, except for the last year and a half of his life."
Walker said the pandemic took a toll on Colin.
She and her husband found out Colin had been smoking weed. When his behavior started to change, they started drug testing him weekly. The drug tests continued for about a year until the spring of 2021.
Walker said Colin was getting through the pandemic but was anxious and depressed.
"Whatever he experimented with, we think he started that spring," Walker said. "Whatever he was experimenting with most likely had fentanyl in it without his knowledge, and he became addicted."
On Aug. 29, 2021, Walker said her husband found him face down in his room.
"He had taken a really small amount of cocaine that was largely fentanyl, and he was gone," she said.
Now, Walker is doing everything she can to spread awareness to help other families.
"There's nothing that we can do to bring Colin back. That would be our first choice – not to be sharing his story this way because he was a lot more than how he died. But the pain is so unbelievable of losing a child in a way that you didn't even know was possible, that we just want to help spare any other families this type of pain," she said.
She also wants young people to understand the dangers that are out there.
"I hope that by spreading awareness, more young people will understand it's not worth the risk and they're not getting what they're being sold," Walker said.
She added that she is not sure where Colin got the drugs from. But she said it's important to understand that parents are parenting in an age they didn't grow up in – a time where drugs can be purchased on social media.
"We did not know he was taking cocaine, but it was probably delivered to our doorstep as easy as a pizza would be delivered because that's how easy it is on social media to get drugs," she said.
More education and other resources are being spread to families and even within high schools in San Mateo County.
Nancy Magee, the San Mateo County superintendent of schools, said their public high schools have Narcan on hand, and as of earlier this year, they've handed out Narcan took kits – a set of protocols and resources detailing how to train staff and administer Narcan.
"A full-on training course that the nurses and coaches and all those who would be at the front line of having to use it are trained," Magee said.
Narcan is part of working toward lowering the number of fatal overdoses. But it's not all of it.
Walker said addressing mental health is important.
"The mental health crisis has not gone away. And kids who are feeling that kind of pain are more likely to turn to illicit substances," Walker said.
She's sharing Colin's story to help others, but she also wants others to remember him for his kind heart.
"He was funny, and most of all, he was so loved," she said. "I hope his short life did have an impact in a way we may never know."
