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Richa Ranade, ASTHO’s Senior Director of Overdose Prevention, says ASTHO’s policy statement on over-the-counter naloxone supports increasing access; Chris Medina, State Medical Operations Center Director at the Texas Department of State Health...
Richa Ranade, ASTHO’s Senior Director of Overdose Prevention, says ASTHO’s policy statement on over-the-counter naloxone supports increasing access; Chris Medina, State Medical Operations Center Director at the Texas Department of State Health Services, outlines the department’s preparation for hurricane response; and ASTHO has a virtual event on Artificial Intelligence in State and Territorial Public Health.
ASTHO Webpage: Over-the-Counter Naloxone Policy Statement
ASTHO Webpage: AI in Public Health—ASTHO Has Entered the Chat
ASTHO Webinar: Artificial Intelligence in State and Territorial Public Health
ROBERT JOHNSON:
This is the award-winning Public Health Review Morning Edition for Monday, August 21, 2023. I'm Robert Johnson. Now, today's news from the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials.
RICHA RANADE:
On July 28th of this year, FDA approved a second naloxone product called ReVive which is a three milligram nasal spray.
ROBERT JOHNSON:
ASTHO's Richa Ranade talking about the FDA's approval of a second naloxone product, and a policy statement that supports over-the-counter access.
RICHA RANADE:
ASTHO supports making over-the-counter naloxone available as one part of a broader strategy to increase access to naloxone. I think it's really important to recognize that there is still a lot of stigma against people who use drugs, and that people may not feel comfortable purchasing naloxone over the counter.
ROBERT JOHNSON:
Ranade says over-the-counter access is part of a bigger strategy.
RICHA RANADE:
So, given those considerations, it will continue to be important to complement the availability of over-the-counter naloxone with ongoing community distribution efforts. That includes overdose education and naloxone distribution programs, distribution and harm reduction in carceral settings, and innovative distribution strategies like naloxone vending machines.
ROBERT JOHNSON:
In the policy statement, ASTHO supports studies to evaluate the effectiveness of over-the-counter access.
RICHA RANADE:
Evaluate how over-the-counter naloxone affects availability, community access, overdose reversals, and cost. This is particularly important as over-the-counter naloxone is newly available. Evaluating the effects of that change will help us understand the impact and also aid in future decision-making.
ROBERT JOHNSON:
You can read ASTHO's policy statement using the link in the show notes.
Getting ready for hurricane season is a year-round job. This is Chris Medina with the Texas Department of State Health Services.
CHRIS MEDINA:
Prior to a hurricane season, we have regular meetings with a lot of our key partners. So, some of these key partners are within the agency. For example, Zoonosis Control Branch, our immunization section, and we really want to cover see if there's any new updates as we go into hurricane season.
ROBERT JOHNSON:
Medina says preparation includes working with partners to make sure all agencies are ready when storms come ashore.
CHRIS MEDINA:
We are part of the Emergency Management Council with Texas Division of Emergency Management. It consists really of all the state partners, and we certainly are part of all the training and then they hold an exercise in June with all the state partners and it focuses on one area.
ROBERT JOHNSON:
And rounding out Medina's hurricane prep checklist...
CHRIS MEDINA:
I think really kind of finally is the supplies and equipment that we have in preparation for hurricane response. We want to make sure that our supplies and equipment is maintained, it's ready to deploy, and that there's really no issues with getting that deployed out in case we need it.
ROBERT JOHNSON:
Also today, public health is talking about AI, and so is ASTHO. O'Keyla Cooper has that story.
O'KEYLA COOPER:
Join ASTHO for a virtual event focusing on artificial intelligence and state and territorial public health, happening tomorrow, August 22, from 2 to 3 p.m. Eastern time. Learn about AI's potential applications, its use in other sectors, public health concerns, emerging experimental uses, risks, and ASTHO's role in the AI dialogue. Don't miss this opportunity to explore AI's impact on public health. The registration link can be found in the show notes.
ROBERT JOHNSON:
Finally, this morning, get this newscast delivered to your mobile device weekdays at 5 a.m. All you have to do is follow us on your podcast player.
And if you have a minute, please take the time to give us a review. We'd like to know what you think.
That'll do it for today's newscast. We're back tomorrow morning with more ASTHO news and information. I'm Robert Johnson. You're listening to the award-winning Public Health Review Morning Edition. Have a great day.
