Justice Department wants workers to carry heroin antidote

U.S. law enforcement agents who deal with heroin addicts may begin carrying the drug naloxone to reverse overdoses, the Justice Department said on Thursday, responding to a surge in heroin use in the United States. Attorney General Eric Holder said he urged federal law enforcement agencies to identify those workers and determine whether they should be trained in how to administer the medication. The move will "pave the way for certain federal agents - such as emergency medical personnel - to begin carrying the potentially life-saving drug," the Justice Department said in a statement. Naloxone is a drug that stops opioids such as heroin from reaching receptors in the brain, which may reverse an overdose.



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