Mecklenburg County ABC stores now carry kits with lifesaving drug
Channel 9's Eli Brand learned the goal for Mecklenburg County is to be a model for other counties, so they can follow the same blueprint.
Brand went to the ABC Spirits on North Graham Street, which is one of 31 locations in Mecklenburg County with a naloxone kit inside the store. The kit includes a dose of naloxone and instructions on how to use it.
ALSO READ: Local organization uses opioid settlement grant money to spread hope
Naloxone, better known by the name brand Narcan, reverses opioid overdoses.
'They're not breathing well. Their pupils are dilated, maybe their lips and fingernails are turning blue,' said Scott Minderlein, a senior officer with the Mecklenburg County ABC Board.
Minderlein is also an instructor with ABC University, a class that teaches useful skills like how to administer naloxone.
Minderlein told Channel 9 he's personally had to administer the medication.
He said the board's main concern is saving people who accidentally touch something potent like fentanyl.
'Maybe someone is using this drug and it gets on their hands and they wind up touching the doorknob, or maybe they end up touching one of the bottles, and the clerk rings it up and wipes their nose,' Minderlein said. 'Now they have inhaled or ingested the drug, so to speak.'
Harry Parker works across the street from an ABC Spirits. He told Channel 9 he's apprehensive about the program and whether it's safe to have non-medical staff administer the medication.
'Let the police handle the situation,' Parker said. 'I mean you're not a medical physician what are you going to do?'
Minderlein said the first call from employees will be to 911 to get medical officials on the move.
He also said ABC law enforcement have the kits on them and know how to use them.
The in-store dosages are there so employees can start the lifesaving process.
ABC University also teaches other useful skills outside of how to use naloxone, including things like how to identify someone in danger of overdosing.
The Mecklenburg County ABC Board said they want to help other counties get naloxone in their stores.
They also want to get naloxone into nightclubs and bars across the county.
WATCH BELOW: Nonprofit empowers formerly incarcerated with second chances
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
13 hours ago
- The Hill
This bill to increase Narcan distribution would save lives and money
Over 200 Americans die each day from opioid overdoses, with nearly 70 percent of these involving synthetic opioids such as fentanyl. The U.S. leads the world in opioid-related deaths. The government must work to address this pressing public health crisis. Naloxone, commonly known by the brand name Narcan, is an opioid-receptor blocker that can reverse opioid overdoses. This easy-to-use nasal spray has the ability to pull somebody back from respiratory failure, and often an almost certain death. Anyone can administer Naloxone. Given how quickly an opioid overdose could lead to brain injury and death, a patient doesn't always have time to wait for emergency services to arrive. It would be ideal if anyone could carry naloxone on their person, just like we carry epi-pens in case of emergencies. While patients can be prescribed naloxone from their primary-care provider to pick up at a pharmacy, and the number of those prescriptions have increased in recent years, many who need naloxone are still without it. Cost has been the most widely cited among the barriers identified. There are also many people in the U.S. without access to regular, preventative health care who never get these prescriptions in the first place. Those with a substance use disorder are less likely to utilize regular, preventative health care. It is unclear whether, overall, this means that those with substance use disorder use other types of medical care, like the emergency room, more than the average patient. One study did find, though, that those with substance use disorder are more likely to return to the emergency room within 72 hours of a visit — a helpful metric that can be used to intervene with individuals who may not have been identified on their first visit. A possible solution is to allow for naloxone to be distributed in the ER without a prescription and without any cost to the patient. We know that easy and free distribution of naloxone goes a long way. In fact, one study found that having a secondary form of naloxone distribution had the greatest effect on decreasing opioid-related deaths. In this study, 'secondary' means that a person at risk of an opioid overdose gets the naloxone from a community member who got it from the hospital, rather than the at-risk individual getting it directly from a hospital or pharmacy themselves. This may be due to the stigma that those with substance use disorder may have or are afraid to face in medical settings. Preventative distribution of naloxone also saves the health care system money from the overdose deaths that are avoided. In the 118th Congress, Rep. Brittany Pettersen (D-Colo.) introduced the HANDS Act, which would allow Medicare, Medicaid and Tricare to provide Naloxone to patients at no cost. Unfortunately, the bill died in committee and has not been reintroduced in the current Congress. One major criticism of this bill was about how it would be funded. This is an even bigger question now that the Trump administration is prioritizing budget cuts of $880 billion over the next 10 years, with much of that expected to be taken from Medicare and Medicaid's budget. We believe that the upfront cost is worth it and would save American taxpayers money in the long run. Some studies find that preventative care saves the health care system modest amounts of money, but others find that some preventative measures, such as screenings, cost more than treating the resultant condition itself. Yet what is often ignored is the cost that isn't directly monetary. For example, while preventing a chronic illness may cost more than treating the illness itself, the economy may lose the productivity of that person if they can no longer work due to their illness. One study found that a community health worker intervention that worked to address unmet social needs for disadvantaged people saved the average Medicaid payer $2.47 for every $1 spent. Given this, Congress should support the reintroduction and passage of the HANDS Act. The bill should also be updated. First, it should encourage naloxone distribution not only to those with substance use disorder, but also to community members who know people with substance use disorder, since the large positive effects of secondary naloxone distribution are evident. Additionally, the bill should emphasize the importance of offering naloxone to those who return to the emergency room within 72 hours, since those with substance use disorder are more likely to do so. Anyone can develop a substance use disorder. The opioid epidemic affects our nation's children, veterans and homeless populations. The 2023 movie 'A Good Place,' starring Florence Pugh and Morgan Freeman, tells the story of an everyday young woman who becomes addicted to prescription painkillers after a car accident, showing how substance use disorder can happen to anyone. Both sides of the aisle can agree that we don't want Americans dying. Passing of the HANDS Act is a step in the right direction.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Nonprofit director in Gaza: ‘Children are literally starving'
Gaza humanitarian director for Save the Children Rachael Cummings said that the situation for people in Gaza is 'catastrophic,' emphasizing that children 'are literally starving.' 'The situation in Gaza is catastrophic for children and increasingly now for adults. There is no food available in the market. Children are literally starving,' she told Jonathan Karl during an interview on ABC's 'This Week.' She noted that her team is 'seeing an exponential line in the number of children attending our clinic,' adding that the number is expected to increase. 'The number of children who are malnourished, very concerningly, pregnant women, women who are breastfeeding are also malnourished,' she continued. Cummings said the clinic in Deir al-Balah, located in the center of Gaza, 'was absolutely packed, and it was a scene I had never witnessed before.' 'I've been working in this sector for over 20 years in the whole of Africa, in various places around the world,' she said. 'And every child in the health center today was malnourished, but also every adult was extremely thin, gaunt-looking, exhausted. The situation is absolutely terrible here.' 'For months I've said, how can it get worse for children? It cannot get any worse for children, but apparently, yes, it can get worse for children,' she later added. Cummings noted that mothers went from 'eating less than three meals a day to two meals a day, to one meal a day.' 'Now, they're not having a meal a day,' she said. 'And this is very, very concerning. And this is at scale.' While she praised the recent aid airdrops in Gaza, which the Israel Defense Forces said included 'flour, sugar, and canned food,' she noted that the airdrops need to be done 'in a controlled manner.' 'Airdrops are not in a controlled manner and one airdrop is equal to around one truck,' she said. 'So we need to bring in humanitarian supplies, supplies over land through the recognized routes. We need the U.N. system to be enabled to manage the distributions.' 'We welcome the fact that now the U.N. is allowed to bring in humanitarian supplies, including food, including medicines, including nutrition commodities, and including hygiene supplies,' she added. Her comments come amid Israel's 'tactical pause' in fighting in Gaza due to mass starvation concerns. While leaders, including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), say that Hamas is to blame because they stole food, reports from the Israeli military indicate that there is no proof that the Palestinian militant group had systematically stolen aid. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
The Hill
2 days ago
- The Hill
Non-profit director in Gaza: ‘Children are literally starving'
Gaza humanitarian director for Save the Children Rachael Cumming said that the situation for people in Gaza is 'catastrophic,' emphasizing that children 'are literally starving.' 'The situation in Gaza is catastrophic for children and increasingly now for adults. There is no food available in the market. Children are literally starving,' she told Jonathan Karl during an interview on ABC's 'This Week.' She noted that her team is 'seeing an exponential line in the number of children attending our clinic,' adding that the number is expected to increase. 'The number of children who are malnourished, very concerningly, pregnant women, women who are breastfeeding are also malnourished,' she continued. Cumming said the clinic in Deir Al-Balah, located in the center of Gaza, 'was absolutely packed, and it was a scene I had never witnessed before.' 'I've been working in this sector for over 20 years in the whole of Africa, in various places around the world,' she said. 'And every child in the health center today was malnourished, but also every adult was extremely thin, gaunt-looking, exhausted. The situation is absolutely terrible here.' 'For months I've said, how can it get worse for children? It cannot get any worse for children, but apparently, yes, it can get worse for children,' she later added. Cumming noted that mothers went from 'eating less than three meals a day to two meals a day, to one meal a day.' 'Now, they're not having a meal a day,' she said. 'And this is very, very concerning. And this is at scale.' While she praised the recent aid airdrops in Gaza, which the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said included 'flour, sugar, and canned food,' she noted that the air drops need to be done 'in a controlled manner.' 'Airdrops are not in a controlled manner and one airdrop is equal to around one truck,' she said. 'So we need to bring in humanitarian supplies, supplies over land through the recognized routes. We need the U.N. system to be enabled to manage the distributions.' 'We welcome the fact that now the U.N. is allowed to bring in humanitarian supplies, including food, including medicines, including nutrition commodities, and including hygiene supplies,' she added. Her comments come amid Israel's 'tactical pause' in fighting in Gaza amid mass starvation concerns. While leaders, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, say that Hamas is to blame because they stole food, reports from the Israeli military indicate that there is no proof that the Palestinian militant group had systematically stolen aid.
