One year after the state launched Naloxone 365, a program that offers the opioid overdose reversal drug to anyone ages 14 or older, advocates say the harm-reduction effort is proving successful. The goal is to reduce fatal overdoses by making the life-saving medication more widely available without a prescription.

“Since we launched this program in January of last year, we have issued more than 132,000 doses of naloxone,” Valerie Mielke, assistant commissioner in the Department of Human Services, said. “This gives individuals a second chance — that when they experience an overdose, they have a friend or loved one who is nearby who can administer the naloxone, it literally saves lives,” she said.

People can access the drug via at least 660 participating pharmacies.

John Power, pharmacist and owner of Power’s Pharmacy in Browns Mills, said, “Seven years ago I lost my son Christopher, and I’ve chosen to get involved with this and try to help people really in his memory. Because really, Christopher is no different than many of the other people who are being lost. And we’re losing really our best and our brightest because I still think stigma plays a large role in opioid use disorder.”

Eddie Frierson of the New Jersey Harm Reduction Coalition, said, “We see people from all walks of life accessing this. I think the biggest piece was (that) the education wasn’t there, and individuals didn’t know they could access this program.”