By Bob Katzen

The Senate 39-0, approved an amendment that would provide $500,000 for the Municipal Naloxone Bulk Purchase Program that allows cities and towns to purchase this life-saving overdose-reversal drug also known by its brand name Narcan, for its municipal first responder agencies at a discount.

“In Springfield, deaths from opioid overdose have nearly doubled in the last year,” said Sen. Eric Lesser (D-Longmeadow), the sponsor of the amendment. “In Chicopee and Holyoke and other regional cities across Massachusetts, the picture is similar. We have not yet turned a corner in the opioid epidemic, so we need to keep the Naloxone Bulk Purchase Trust Fund fully funded and we need to continue investing in recovery and treatment tools to help those struggling with addiction.”